Chapter 171 – Innate Nine Qi Transforms Divine Power, One Sword Suppresses Golden Core!

The Mourning Staff and the Decapitation Blade.

These were the Ancient Fiend Treasures that Ox and Horse took pride in.

What struck people as peculiar was how similar the auras of these two Ancient Fiend Treasures were—both were sinister objects brimming with malice and ghostly energy.

Not only that, but the aura emanating from Ox and Horse was also a chilling netherworld energy.

It seemed as though they shared the same origin, inheriting from the same lineage.

This wasn’t Lu Chen’s imagination; it was a tangible reality.

It was also why Lu Chen hadn’t rushed to attack initially, instead patiently observing the two with his Azure Lotus Eye.

Because these two reminded him of a classic duo from his past life:

Ox-Head and Horse-Face of the underworld.

If Lu Chen’s deduction was correct, then under specific circumstances, these two might be able to join forces and unleash some unique Divine Ability.

This was something Lu Chen had to guard against.

And precisely because he was uncertain what trump cards they held,

Lu Chen decided to go all out from the very beginning, denying them any time to think.

The best outcome would be to prevent them from joining forces, defeating them one by one.

Only then could he ensure victory in this battle at the smallest cost.

In the sky, the massive Lotus Spirit Sword began its relentless descent.

Its enormous size and staggering weight caused the tip of the Lotus Spirit Sword to violently friction with the air, igniting massive flames.

From a distance, it looked like a gigantic meteor hurtling toward the ground.

Yet, even in the face of such a terrifying Lotus Spirit Sword,

Ox and Horse showed not a trace of fear.

With a swing of his staff, Ox released a torrent of ghostly energy from his Mourning Staff.

The ghostly energy intertwined, swiftly transforming into a massive flood of vengeful spirits that surged toward Lu Chen’s giant Lotus Sword.

On the other side, Horse swung his Decapitation Blade.

Though the ghostly energy he unleashed was similar to Ox’s,

the vengeful spirits he summoned were different.

Unlike Ox’s twisted, tormented spirits that seemed devoid of any will to live,

the spirits Horse released were ferocious, their eyes filled with murderous intent, bloodthirsty by nature.

One was a giant club formed from ghostly energy, the other a massive blade of the same.

The two weapons, one after the other, quickly collided with Lu Chen’s Lotus Spirit Sword.

Boom!

For a moment, time around the three seemed to stand still.

Shortly after, a terrifying Spiritual Power turbulence erupted from the point of impact between the Lotus Spirit Sword, the Mourning Staff, and the Decapitation Blade.

The powerful Spiritual Power currents morphed into a fearsome vortex, immediately sweeping through the surroundings.

The turbulence was so intense that even Lu Chen had to summon numerous Lotus Sword Qi to surround himself,

forming a Sword Qi barrier to block the terrifying Spiritual Power chaos.

Ox and Horse on the other side, however, had it easier.

Relying on their formidable Protective Qi, they directly withstood the powerful currents.

Even so, their bodies were forced back over a hundred meters before they stabilized.

Yet, after this clash, Lu Chen’s previously unstoppable Lotus Spirit Sword… shattered.Watching the shattered Lotus Spirit Sword disintegrate into countless tiny Sword Qi fragments, Ox stood in place, a mocking expression on his face as he said, “Our dear Holy Son, is this all you’re capable of?”

“If your strength is only at this level, then I’m afraid you won’t be able to suppress the two of us.”

Facing Ox’s mockery, Lu Chen’s expression remained completely unchanged.

Because from the very beginning, he had never expected to defeat Ox and Horse with just that single sword strike.

After all, the greatest advantage of a Sword Domain lies in its ability to suppress enemies below the Harmony Realm.

And in creating an absolutely advantageous combat environment for Lu Chen.

But advantage is not victory.

No matter how terrifying the Sword Domain might be, it could hardly bridge the cultivation gap between him and Ox and Horse.

So if Lu Chen wanted to defeat them, he needed more preparations.

Relying solely on the Righteous Azure Lotus Sword Domain was far from enough.

However, the Righteous Azure Lotus Sword Domain was never renowned for its instantaneous offensive power.

Its true terror lay in its characteristic of growing stronger the longer the battle lasted.

Given enough time, the Lotus Spirit Sword techniques Lu Chen unleashed would only become increasingly powerful.

They might have blocked his Lotus Spirit Sword this time.

But that didn’t mean they could do it again.

Yet this battle was different from previous ones.

Because time… was not on Lu Chen’s side.

Lu Chen had never forgotten his purpose for coming here.

Defeating Ox and the others was secondary; preventing Taotie, one of the Four Fiends, from breaking the Seal was the true priority.

This was also why Ox and Horse hadn’t been in a hurry to attack initially.

The longer they dragged things out, the more advantageous it was for them—why would they rush?

Although Lu Chen knew time was pressing, he also understood that haste leads to chaos.

Even with limited time, he couldn’t afford to lose his composure.

Because the more rushed he became, the more chaotic things would get.

After this initial probe, Lu Chen had gained a rough understanding of Ox and Horse’s strength levels.

With this in mind, the Ink Dragon Sword beneath Lu Chen’s feet immediately shot out.

“Roar!”

Accompanied by a Dragon’s Roar, the Ink Dragon Sword transformed into a several dozen-meter-long ink-black dragon that coiled around Lu Chen.

Additionally, Diting, who had been hiding behind Lu Chen all this time, revealed its true form.

The Nine Qi around Diting continuously shifted, eventually transforming into the Blazing Sunfire of the Three-Legged Golden Crow.

After all, among the mystical beast destinies Diting had secretly learned, the Three-Legged Golden Crow’s Blazing Sunfire was most suitable for the current situation.

Because the sky in the Mountains-Seas Realm… had brightened.

Although the simulated Blazing Sunfire couldn’t grant Diting the terrifying amplification the Three-Legged Golden Crow enjoyed during daylight.

It was still enough to allow Diting to join the current battle.

Moreover, Lu Chen had long instructed Diting.

In this battle, it didn’t need to do much—just try its best to restrain one of the Golden Core Stage Cultivators.

Despite Diting’s usual carefree appearance.

When it came to dealing with Demonic Heresy, it never held back.

Because Auspicious Beasts like Diting and heretical paths like Ox and Horse were practically natural enemies, inherently incompatible with each other.

“Little Lu, leave that horse-face to me.”

After saying this, Diting leaped onto the Ink Dragon’s head and charged toward Horse below.

At the same time, Lu Chen controlled countless Lotus Sword Qi to assault Ox.

Seeing this, Ox and Horse immediately split up to confront their respective opponents.Chou Niu gripped the Mourning Staff, swinging the massive rod continuously around his body.

Each swing precisely shattered the surrounding lotus Sword Qi.

He quickly closed in on Lu Chen.

In response, Lu Chen summoned a blood-red Spirit Sword in his hand.

With a single swing, he directly clashed with Chou Niu’s Mourning Staff.

Although Lu Chen’s Physical Body had become comparable to top-tier Body Cultivators of the same level after the Dragon Transformation Pool’s baptism, it still fell significantly short when facing a Golden Core Stage Cultivator like Chou Niu.

In just one exchange, Lu Chen was sent flying by Chou Niu.

Seizing the opportunity, Chou Niu gave Lu Chen no chance to recover, immediately pursuing him.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Amid a series of terrifying attacks, Lu Chen was completely suppressed in a short time.

Not only could he find no opportunity to counterattack, but his aura grew increasingly feeble.

Like a candle flickering in the wind, it seemed on the verge of extinguishing at any moment.

This situation was not unusual, as Lu Chen was simultaneously maintaining his Sword Domain while battling Chou Niu.

It was only the Sword Domain’s suppression of Chou Niu’s Entering Dao Conception that prevented Lu Chen’s situation from being even worse.

However, as the fight progressed, Chou Niu began to sense something amiss.

Despite repeatedly feeling that Lu Chen’s Spiritual Power was nearly depleted and his Physical Body could no longer withstand the fierce assaults—almost on the brink of collapse—a mysterious force continuously emerged, pulling Lu Chen back from the precipice.

Moreover, Lu Chen seemed capable of foreseeing his attacks, always managing to respond preemptively.

In this way, the vast chasm in Physical Body strength between them was gradually neutralized.

Faced with this unknown power, Chou Niu grew increasingly agitated.

He had assumed that his overwhelming strength would allow him to crush Lu Chen in direct combat.

And while he was indeed dominating—Lu Chen was utterly unable to fight back, often forced to teleport prematurely to evade his strikes—no matter how he looked at it, Lu Chen was merely passively enduring the assault.

Yet, despite this overwhelming advantage, Chou Niu felt unable to convert it into victory.

There was always a lingering thread of vitality sustaining Lu Chen, enabling him to hold on until now.

Damn it, what exactly is that power?

Does he have other means besides the Sword Domain?

Chou Niu couldn’t comprehend this, as Lu Chen’s current methods defied conventional logic.

After all, Chou Niu would never imagine that the ceaselessly emerging mysterious power within Lu Chen was not some spell or Divine Ability.

It was his other self from a different era, continuously consuming Elixirs!

Inside Lu Chen’s Cave Residence in the Azure Cloud Sect.

At this moment, Lu Chen in the game retrieved all the precious Elixirs he had prepared and consumed them in one go.

Normally, ingesting so many Elixirs at once would be difficult to digest quickly, even for someone with a Fairy Lotus Womb.

But this was under ordinary circumstances.

The Lu Chen in the game and the one in reality shared the same body and soul.

Thus, when the game version consumed these Elixirs, their power immediately manifested in reality.

It was only by relying on this external energy that Lu Chen managed to persist until now.Some people appear to fight alone, yet in reality, they wield the combined strength of two.

Defeating Lu Chen was never as simple as overcoming just one version of him in the game or reality!

Moreover, the reason Lu Chen could maintain absolute composure in such a situation was because he possessed a trump card that guaranteed victory.

[Name: Sky-Splitting Seal]

[Type: Mystic Talisman]

[Effect: Contains a single Divine Ability strike from the Transformation Soul Stage Cultivator, Yan Faxing. Upon use, it rivals the direct intervention of a Transformation Soul Stage expert.]

[Note: Requires at least one million units of Spiritual Power to activate (condition met)]

[Side Effect: Risk of falling into the Transformation Illusion]

This Mystic Talisman from the Transformation Soul Stage was a protective charm given to Lu Chen by his Master, Spirit Fire Daoist, who gritted his teeth in reluctance when Lu Chen was heading to the Great Yan Dynasty.

With this talisman in hand, let alone mere Golden Core Stage Cultivators like Ox and Horse, even Nascent Soul Stage experts or the Leader of the Black Lotus Sect—Lu Chen had some confidence in giving them a modest shock with this talisman.

Plan before acting, never take risks without absolute certainty of victory.

This was the very foundation of Lu Chen’s courage to bring Mu Xiaoye here to prevent Taotie from breaking the Seal.

Thus, from the very start of this battle, Lu Chen wasn’t thinking about how to win—but how to win without paying too high a price.

As for losing?

That word simply did not exist in Lu Chen’s dictionary.

Because if such a situation ever arose, it would never be because the enemy was too strong—only because he had been careless or inadequately prepared.

The fault would lie with himself, not the enemy.

Growing increasingly frustrated at his inability to subdue Lu Chen, Ox snapped, “You cunning brat, is hiding all you know how to do?”

As Ox swung his club down, Lu Chen once again seemed to foresee the attack, his body dissolving into countless lotus petals and vanishing from the spot.

Ox’s strike landed on a small hill below, shattering a fifty- to sixty-meter section of the several-hundred-meter peak and covering the entire mountain with cracks—a testament to the terrifying force behind the blow.

But no matter how fearsome the attack, it meant nothing if it didn’t hit its target.

As Lu Chen’s form coalesced once more in the distance, he finally spoke, staring at the enraged Ox: “You’re right. There’s no need for me to keep dodging.”

With that, Lu Chen released the Bloodthirsty Spirit Sword from his grip and brought his palms together.

In the next moment, a terrifying surge of Divine Ability power erupted from within him.

Soon, a massive golden Divine Manifestation materialized behind Lu Chen.

The Virtue Star Manifestation… Metal!

As the Metal Virtue Star Manifestation appeared behind Lu Chen, its brilliant golden radiance instantly illuminated the surroundings.

Staring at this colossal entity, Ox’s expression turned grim. He hadn’t expected Lu Chen to still have a trump card at this stage!

Wasn’t this guy not even twenty years old?

Why was he as seasoned as a century-old monster, with endless tricks up his sleeve?

Didn’t he possess even a shred of the arrogance typical of a young prodigy?

Weren’t youngsters supposed to be inexperienced, prone to carelessness and underestimating their foes?

How was this kid as steady as some ancient fossil, brimming with cunning at every turn?

Just as Lu Chen summoned the Metal Virtue Star Manifestation, Diting—battered and bruised in the distance—shouted desperately, “Protector Lu, this Leader can’t hold on much longer! Aren’t you done yet?”

Lu Chen paid no heed to Diting, his focus entirely fixed on Ox not far away.Then he controlled the Golden Virtue Star Aspect and single-handedly grasped the Lotus Spirit Sword that had once again gathered in the air.

Unlike the previous thirty-meter-long Lotus Spirit Sword, this one had absorbed a massive amount of Spiritual Power emitted by Ox and Horse, growing even larger to a length of fifty meters.

This length was almost equal to Lu Chen’s current Golden Virtue Star Aspect.

After the Golden Virtue Star Aspect grasped the giant sword with both hands, the transformation did not stop there.

A fierce whirlwind swept around Lu Chen as the seven Qi within his body, excluding Spiritual Qi, all transformed into “Physical Strength.”

The manifested result was that both Lu Chen and his Golden Virtue Star Deity’s power were multiplied to a terrifying degree.

Watching the massive Star Aspect holding the giant sword high above its head with both hands, the expression on Ox’s face shifted from fear to dread.

This time, he truly sensed danger.

Escape—he must escape.

This sword strike… he couldn’t withstand it!

Without any hesitation, Ox immediately tried to create distance from Lu Chen and evade the attack.

But he had forgotten that he was currently within Lu Chen’s Sword Domain.

Unless he could break through Lu Chen’s Sword Domain, there was no escape for him!

“Slash.”

With Lu Chen’s cold voice, the terrifying giant sword in the hands of the Golden Virtue Star Aspect slowly descended.

This “slowness” was only relative to the massive size of the Star Aspect.

In reality, the speed of the sword’s descent was extremely fast.

Moreover, Lu Chen’s strike seemed to have predicted all possible areas where Ox could evade, covering them in advance.

As a result, Ox, who had rushed to the edge of the Sword Domain, suddenly realized… there was no way to avoid it.

With no other choice, Ox decided to withstand the attack head-on. Raising his Mourning Staff, he roared and struck toward the massive Spirit Sword above him.

But just as he made his move, he suddenly noticed that his Mourning Staff… was covered in cracks!

Wh-When did this happen?!

In a daze, images of his previous battles with Lu Chen flashed through Ox’s mind.

In those scenes, every one of Lu Chen’s attacks had precisely landed on a specific spot of the Mourning Staff in his hands.

It was as if Lu Chen had identified that spot as the Mourning Staff’s weakness.

Had he planned all of this from the very beginning of the fight?!

Staring at the cracked Mourning Staff, the fear in Ox’s heart vanished.

It was replaced by an indescribable calm.

He realized that he had likely fallen into Lu Chen’s trap from the very start.

Yet he had been completely unaware, thinking he held the advantage.

This feeling of being utterly outmatched in both strength and tactics left Ox without a trace of regret.

Even if he were to do it all over again, he felt he might end up in the same situation.

And Ox’s guess was correct. Lu Chen had engaged in close combat not out of confidence in his own Physical Body, but out of confidence in the weakness-targeting attacks of his “Bloodthirsty Spirit Sword” and “Azure Lotus Mark.”

[Name: Bloodthirsty Spirit Sword]

[Type: Magic Treasure]

[Realm: Second Realm]

[Effect: Devours the blood of the attacked to nourish itself; wounds inflicted cannot heal for a short time.]

The Mourning Staff was one of the Ancient Fiend Treasures, and the greatest characteristic of Ancient Fiend Treasures was that they were, in fact, a unique form of living beings.Thus the characteristic of the Bloodthirsty Spirit Sword’s wounds being unable to heal quickly remained effective even against Ancient Fiend Treasures.

Combined with the Lotus Mark’s weak point attacks.

Though both were second-realm Magic Treasures, the Mourning Staff had long reached its limit during that series of collisions.

It was only after noticing the Mourning Staff was on the verge of shattering that Lu Chen fully decided to make his move.

He began by testing Chou Niu and his companions’ strength with the Lotus Spirit Sword.

Used Elixir power to stall the enemies in the mid-phase, while employing the Bloodthirsty Spirit Sword to destroy their Magic Treasures.

Finally, he completely eliminated the enemies by combining Constellation Power with Innate Nine Qi.

Some battles may appear accidental, yet they are actually inevitable.

Because someone had already planned the outcome long before the battle began.

Innate Nine Qi transforms into Divine Power, a heaven-propping sword suppresses the Golden Core.

This was the ending Lu Chen had designed for Chou Niu.

And also Chou Niu’s final swan song in this world.

Boom!

As the giant sword in the Golden Virtue Constellation’s hand completely descended,

The Mourning Staff in Chou Niu’s hand shattered completely.

Without this Magic Treasure and relying solely on his Protective Qi, he couldn’t withstand Lu Chen’s attack at all, completely submerged in the massive Lotus Spirit Sword…

(End of Chapter)