Chapter 233 – Before Your Spirit Power Runs Out, You May Not Kill Us All

“Fellow Daoist Lu, this person holds a deep grudge against my Martial God Mountain. Could you make an exception?”

“If you could accommodate us, Xing Li—and the Martial God Mountain behind me—will surely repay you handsomely in the future.”

Although they outnumbered Lu Chen, who stood alone, the critical issue was their proximity to Penglai Island.

If Ye Hao and Zhao Liuhuo were allowed to set foot on Penglai, it would mean they had completed the Academy’s assessment.

Had Lu Chen not appeared, Xing Li was confident he could eliminate Ye Hao and the others before they reached Penglai.

But with Lu Chen’s sudden intervention, the situation had undoubtedly become complicated.

Even if the eight of them combined their strength to overpower Lu Chen, they would never be able to keep him there.

After all, reputation speaks volumes, just as a tree’s shadow follows its form.

The Azure Cloud Sect was renowned for two things.

First, it had the fewest True Disciples among the top ten sects in the Central Province, each one an elite.

Second, the Azure Cloud Sect was exceptionally united.

If you provoked one, you wouldn’t be facing just one or two cultivators from the sect—you’d be confronting a swarm.

Among them, multiple Golden Core Stage Daoists from the Azure Cloud Sect might even appear.

Once, a True Disciple of the Azure Cloud Sect died at the hands of a certain school during a training journey.

To seek justice for that disciple, the Azure Cloud Sect mobilized everyone, from the Sect Leader down to the ordinary disciples.

Concepts like “seniors should not bully juniors” simply did not exist in the Azure Cloud Sect.

In the end, everyone directly or indirectly responsible for the True Disciple’s death paid the price.

That Central Province school never recovered.

Such was the Azure Cloud Sect—righteous yet domineering.

Thus, even though Xing Li inwardly wished he could tear the meddling Lu Chen to pieces, he chose to yield.

He was outmatched in cultivation and outclassed in background.

Aside from yielding, he had no better option.

Yet Lu Chen remained unmoved by Xing Li’s words.

He looked calmly at Xing Li and the others and said, “Either leave, or die by my sword. Choose one.”

The atmosphere instantly grew tense.

“Is there truly no room for negotiation?”

“Lu Chen, you are only one person, while we number eight.”

“Even if your Sword Path is unparalleled, you might not be able to kill all of us before your Spiritual Power is exhausted.”

“Besides, we don’t need to fight you to the death. We only need to get past you and kill Ye Hao. If you leave now, my earlier offer still stands.”

“For the sake of someone with no sect or school, will you truly make an enemy of us, the Martial God Mountain?”

Unwilling to let Ye Hao go, Xing Li spoke in a heavy tone.

In response, Lu Chen said expressionlessly, “You cannot represent the Martial God Mountain, and I cannot represent the Azure Cloud Sect. That is all.”

A Quasi-Celestial was still only “quasi.” No matter how highly Martial God Mountain regarded Xing Li, it didn’t mean he held absolute authority there yet.

Reality was just as Lu Chen said: Xing Li couldn’t represent Martial God Mountain, and Lu Chen couldn’t represent the Azure Cloud Sect.

Whether the two sects would go to war over this was certainly not a decision for either of them to make.

Hearing this, Xing Li understood Lu Chen’s stance clearly.Though Xing Li had long heard of the Azure Cloud Sect’s reputation for being “overbearing and tyrannical” and “meddlesome,” he never expected Lu Chen to go to such lengths for two complete strangers.

Since things had come to this, there was nothing left to say.

Xing Li turned to the others beside him and said seriously, “I’ll hold off this Azure Cloud Sword Cultivator. You help me kill that Ye Hao. After it’s done, whatever requests you have—as long as I, Xing Li, can fulfill them—I’ll do my utmost to satisfy.”

“If you don’t believe me, I, Xing Li, can swear by the Heavenly Dao.”

Hearing this, the two Martial God Mountain cultivators merely nodded silently.

The remaining five Immortal Fiends, however, showed delighted expressions.

These words were exceptionally important to them.

It meant they could leverage Xing Li’s connections to enter Martial God Mountain—a Sect ranked among the top ten, even top five, major schools.

This would undoubtedly grant them more cultivation opportunities.

After all, the cultivation method of Immortal Fiends… was to devour others’ Dao.

And Martial God Mountain surely contained many perfect specimens that met their requirements.

Thinking this, they exchanged glances before casting meaningful looks toward Lu Chen.

They believed their implied message would be clear to Lu Chen:

Lu Chen would pretend to be held back while they successfully eliminated Ye Hao.

After the deed was done, they’d give Lu Chen some benefits in return.

A perfect win-win situation.

The Immortal Fiends were convinced Lu Chen would never refuse such a trade.

After all, like them, he was an outsider here.

What they didn’t anticipate was that Lu Chen had never intended to let them leave from the very beginning.

The so-called “boundary marked by sword scars” was merely Lu Chen’s pretext for eliminating them.

They were currently not far from Penglai, where many could clearly witness the events here.

If Lu Chen rashly killed these Immortal Fiends without sufficient justification, it would inevitably invite criticism.

This would greatly disadvantage his future operations in the outside world.

By showing courtesy before force, if Xing Li and the others still chose to attack,

then even Martial God Mountain couldn’t fault him for eliminating them.

Thus, while Xing Li’s group appeared to be initiating action, they were actually being forced into it by Lu Chen.

This battle had been inevitable from the start.

Meanwhile, Xing Li and the Immortal Fiends remained completely unaware of this.

After all, they held no prior grudge against Lu Chen.

They never imagined Lu Chen had been seizing on a pretext from the very beginning.

“Attack!”

Xing Li shouted, suddenly producing a Magic Treasure in his hand.

This treasure was called the Myriad Phenomena Cloud Disk, a terrain-type Magic Treasure.

When activated, it formed a massive myriad phenomena cloud layer beneath Xing Li’s feet.

As long as Xing Li stood upon this cloud layer, he could connect his Ancient Desolate Body to the treasure.

It was equivalent to having both feet planted on “solid ground.”

Undoubtedly, this was a treasure specially prepared for Xing Li by Martial God Mountain according to his Ancient Desolate Body.

Its purpose was to allow him to fully utilize his Ancient Desolate Body’s effects even in special environments.

In an instant, the Myriad Phenomena Cloud Disk enveloped both Xing Li and Lu Chen.

And because the Myriad Phenomena Cloud Disk was a physical object rather than some Concept or Divine Ability,

Lu Chen’s surrounding Sword Domain couldn’t suppress it.

Boom!As soon as the Myriad Phenomena Cloud Disk enveloped Lu Chen, he immediately sensed the resounding thunder around him.

Yet, Lu Chen remained unhurried, even allowing the Immortal Fiends and the two cultivators from Martial God Mountain to charge toward Ye Hao and the others.

Hidden within the Myriad Phenomena Cloud Disk, Xing Li secretly observed Lu Chen, who hovered in the air atop his Sword.

Although Xing Li had repeatedly emphasized their numerical advantage and Lu Chen’s isolation, claiming they held the upper hand, he was well aware of Lu Chen’s strength. He knew that in a one-on-one fight, he stood no chance against Lu Chen.

Thus, his only goal was to stall Lu Chen.

Strangely, Lu Chen seemed entirely unconcerned about Ye Hao and the others’ safety, standing calmly in place despite Xing Li’s attempts to delay him.

This bizarre scene filled Xing Li with intense unease, as if he had overlooked something crucial.

Meanwhile, Ye Hao and Zhao Liuhuo faced the fierce assault of the two Martial God Mountain cultivators and five Immortal Fiends.

Though the situation remained perilous, they no longer felt the same despair as before.

“Liuhuo, leave the five to me. You handle the other two. Don’t linger—escape at the first opportunity.”

“Don’t worry, these few won’t be able to keep me here.”

With those words, Ye Hao charged toward the five Immortal Fiends nearby, while Zhao Liuhuo took the initiative to engage the two Martial God Mountain cultivators.

“Roar!”

As Zhao Liuhuo’s life-bound Gu Insect, the Rock-Shattering Lion, activated, his skin turned gray, covering his entire body like stone, resembling a statue.

Unnoticed by Zhao Liuhuo, his life-bound Gu Insect had undergone significant changes in appearance. Not only did it look more divine and extraordinary, but a unique Bloodline Power also slowly emanated from within him.

In the next moment, wisps of white smoke enveloped Zhao Liuhuo’s body, seemingly granting him some special enhancement.

Witnessing this, Lu Chen’s expression turned peculiar.

He sensed a power similar to that of the Meow King emanating from Zhao Liuhuo.

In other words, like the Meow King, Zhao Liuhuo had acquired a similar fate-bestowed power.

‘Classic of Mountains and Seas Bestiary · Suanni: A famed beast capable of traveling a thousand li, the Suanni and wild horses cover five hundred li. It prefers tranquility over movement, enjoys sitting, and has an affinity for smoke and fire.’

Based on the fate-bestowed power radiating from Zhao Liuhuo, Lu Chen vaguely deduced his identity.

As the saying goes, the Dragon begets nine offspring, each unique.

The Suanni is one of the nine sons of the Dragon.

It seemed likely that Zhao Liuhuo possessed royal Bloodline.

He might even be the current Crown Prince who had narrowly escaped from the Imperial Palace.

At this thought, Lu Chen’s expression grew intrigued.

A Crown Prince, appearing in the White Deer Academy of the Great Ying Dynasty under the guise of an outsider—there was undoubtedly more to this story.

However, Lu Chen paid no mind to these secrets of the Great Ying Dynasty.

His sole focus was on the five Immortal Fiends charging toward Ye Hao.

Above the Sea of Learning, the five Immortal Fiends spread out, encircling Ye Hao to prevent his escape amidst the chaos.

Facing the five, Ye Hao mobilized the Qi throughout his body, his heart beating rapidly.

The heartbeat was steady and powerful, resonating like a great drum.

As this occurred, mysterious patterns began to emerge across Ye Hao’s body.Then Ye Hao raised his head and looked at the five Immortal Fiends in the air.

That single glance made the expressions of the numerous Immortal Fiends turn serious.

Because they realized that this little brat before them wasn’t as simple as they had imagined.

Although this kid only had the cultivation of the seventh layer of the Foundation Establishment Stage,

with the activation of his secret technique, he had now reached a level comparable to a Body Cultivator at Foundation Establishment Perfection.

More crucially, they sensed that this kid likely still had hidden cards up his sleeve.

Because they felt that Ye Hao didn’t seem entirely accustomed to this secret technique, suggesting he rarely used it.

This indicated that his true expertise lay beyond just this.

“Old Zhu, it’s up to you.”

“Alright.”

Zhu Cunfu took the lead, transforming into a meat mountain over ten meters tall, crashing down toward Ye Hao with the force of a collapsing mountain.

To the surprise of the five, Ye Hao showed no intention of dodging this time. Instead, he pushed off forcefully from the Gu vessel beneath his feet and threw a punch directly at Zhu Cunfu’s abdomen.

Boom!

The force of this punch was earth-shattering, catching everyone off guard.

Zhu Cunfu, who had already activated the Reverse Life Nine Transformations, was actually sent flying by Ye Hao’s single punch.

It was worth noting that Zhu Cunfu at this moment was a meat mountain over ten meters tall.

In comparison, Ye Hao’s physique was undoubtedly much smaller.

Yet, in this contest of strength, it was Zhu Cunfu who temporarily fell at a disadvantage.

Zhu Cunfu’s body was sent flying backward, tumbling several times across the sea surface before he managed to rise again.

He glanced at his abdomen, where a distinct fist mark was left.

The corner of his mouth was also bleeding profusely.

It was clear how much damage Ye Hao’s punch had inflicted on him.

Although Ye Hao’s punch was astonishingly powerful, even injuring Zhu Cunfu, an Immortal Fiend, quite severely,

Zhu Cunfu’s expression appeared oddly pleased.

As if the punch wasn’t a punishment to him, but a reward.

And the reality was indeed so…

Ye Hao looked at his aching right arm and the split tiger’s mouth on his right hand, his gaze extremely grave.

Because that punch had been aimed at taking Zhu Cunfu’s life.

Yet the result was far from satisfactory, and he himself had suffered backlash.

Zhu Cunfu’s body was peculiarly special, capable of reflecting a certain proportion of the attacks he received.

Coupled with his own terrifying regenerative abilities,

this made him extremely effective at countering Body Cultivators.

The injury on Ye Hao’s right arm was born from this.

And this was only one of the five opponents.

Ye Hao knew nothing about the strength or Dao traditions of the other four.

There was no time for Ye Hao to ponder.

The other four Immortal Fiends immediately launched their attacks.

Two from the Great Thousand Gate, two from the Black Lotus Sect, and one from the Corpse Fiend Cave.

Although, to conceal their identities, they didn’t use their original Dao traditions,

instead adopting the roles of Body Cultivators, Dao Cultivators, and Puppet Masters to battle Ye Hao,

they had devoured many prodigies during this period, and each had made significant progress in strength.

The result was evident:

Among these five, all had achieved fourth-grade Earthly Dao Foundation Establishment, just one step away from Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment.

Although none of the five individually were a match for Ye Hao,

together, even if Ye Hao wanted to take down just one of them, it wouldn’t be an easy task.

In an instant, Ye Hao was completely suppressed by the five, finding no opportunity to fight back.But what they failed to notice was an Azure Profound Spirit Sword already hovering above their heads.

And a figure slowly emerged from the clouds not far away.

Lu Chen watched the five Immortal Fiends besieging Ye Hao, his gaze utterly calm—so calm it seemed as though he were merely looking at five corpses.

Sword Domain… Expand.

(End of Chapter)