“Two Martial Lords!” Shi Ruida was shocked at first, but when he discovered their cultivation base, he put his heart back to his chest. Besides, although he was inside the array, he did not suffer any attack, nor was his power weakened at all. While fuming, he cried out, “You’re looking to die!”
His bulging robe exploded abruptly as streams of Primordial Qi shot out of him like bullets, flying away in all directions.
Bam!
Bam!
Bam!
All of them fell onto the four sides of the array, blocked by waves of invisible forces, and exploded. The air rippled with each explosion like the surface of the water. Surprisingly, none of the attacks could break through the array.
Luo Yunshang and Chen Dasheng, who were guarding the array, were slightly taken aback by the attack, but their eyes were full of shock and great joy. In the beginning, they did not have high hopes on this simple Four Quadrants Array, and yet, it did manage to trap a Martial King! Although a significant amount of their Primordial Qi was consumed under the attack just now, if calculated at this rate, they should have no problem trapping him for the time it took for half an incense stick to burn.
“What!” Shi Ruida’s face fell. “I’m trapped by two Martial Lords in an array? This is ridiculous!” He began to attack crazily. Chen Dasheng and Luo Yunshang’s face grew paler with each attack, but the array was impregnable, no matter how fierce the attacks were.
Zhou Chuan’s face grew uglier as he watched Xiao Qingwang fly toward Pang Chengwen. He ground his teeth and said, “I understand now. Your plan was to make us abandon our chariot with an illusion, then trap Shi Ruida in an array. And when that Xiao Qingwang kills Pang Chengwen, he will come back to kill Shi Ruida. What a brilliant plan! So, what about my opponent? Although I’m just a one-star Great Martial Master, I’m sure you’ve arranged someone to deal with me.”
Yunxiao laughed. “Be patient! My strategy is to delay as much as possible until Qingwang kills one of them.”
Zhou Chuan’s eyes gleamed with a strong killing intent. A mystic weapon appeared in his hand, and then he rushed toward Yunxiao with it while shouting, “It seems that you are indeed the leader of these people! I’ll kill you first, then save Shi Ruida, and finally kill that Xiao Qingwang!”
He knew at once where his chance lay. The odds between them were even, depending on whether Pang Chengwen was killed first or Shi Ruida was released first. If the two Martial Kings could join hands, Xiao Qingwang would definitely lose.
“Hehe! Why are you so impatient? If I am not wrong, the Cauldron of Five Elements is with you, isn’t it?” Yunxiao lightly kicked the ground and drifted backward like a fallen leaf.
Zhou Chuan was horrified. He could not understand how Yunxiao guessed that. Any normal person would think that something so valuable must be with the strongest man. Unfortunately for him, Yunxiao was not a normal person.
His attack was only a decoy. He looked around warily, because he thought Yunxiao must have arranged someone else to deal with him. The reason why that person had not shown up should be because they did not have the confidence in defeating him, so they were delaying the time as much as possible.
“You don’t have to look around. There is no one else.” Yunxiao chuckled and said, “All the people I arranged have shown up, so I’ll have to deal with you myself.”
“Hmph! I don’t believe you!” cried Zhou Chuan in a cold voice. Meanwhile, he swung his sword faster and harder, but he soon found out that he could not touch even the edges of Yunxiao’s clothes, which terrified him.
‘Does he really have no other plans?’ Looking at Yunxiao’s calm face, Zhou Chuan grew anxious and doubtful. “Unseal!” At the shout, his mystic weapon transformed into a spirit snake, darting back and forth rapidly within its range of attack. It moved so fast that it seemed like an offensive technique that covered a wide area. This kind of sword technique was exactly the bane of some magical movement techniques.
Slightly surprised, Yunxiao moved even faster with Nether Swap, avoiding the sword within a very narrow space. That stunned Zhou Chuan, and only then did he really believe what the other said. ‘He should have no other plans due to limited manpower, and this movement technique alone is more than enough for him to delay the time.’
“Since you are so confident, let’s see how you will avoid my attack next! Unseal!”
Zhou Chuan shouted again. The spirit snake sword in his hand burst into a flash of light as it suddenly expanded rapidly, growing at least seven or eight times larger in the blink of an eye into a huge python-like weapon, and then biting down toward Yunxiao.
“A second unseal?” Yunxiao was startled, and he immediately began to reassess the strength of the Zhou family. Only a mystic weapon of the fourth-tier or above could be unsealed a second time, and it could only be refined by an alchemist of the fifth-tier or above.
The fact that Zhou Chuan, who was only a steward with the cultivation base of a Great Martial Master, had such a high-level mystic weapon showed the terrible power and heritage of the Zhou family. At the same time, it also proved that this family was an existence that the current Yanwu could not afford to offend.
Looking at the approaching python-like mystic weapon, Yunxiao did not retreat or dodge, but kept performing various incantation gestures. Streams of golden gas emerged around him as it gathered and condensed in his palm into a huge golden seal, which he pushed out with all his might.
“Life passes like a dream, a mark left by goose claw in the snow. The Floating Life Seal!”
Bam!
Shafts of golden light broke out from his palm like a blooming golden lotus flower, blinding those who looked at it. The great python was instantly devoured by the light, and then it was knocked and thrown away amid wails.
‘What martial technique is this? How can it be so powerful!’ Zhou Chuan was stunned as his mystic weapon was knocked back. A great force rushed up the weapon and hit him, forcing him to step back repeatedly.
With a serious face, Yunxiao walked out of the golden light while his body emanated waves of Primordial Qi. “If this is all you got, everything will be over soon,” he said coldly.
‘His Primordial Qi waves are indeed that of a five-stars Martial Master, and yet he can knock away a full-power attack of my spirit snake sword! How did that happen!’ Zhou Chuan’s face was shocked and full of disbelief.
Luo Yunshang, Chen Dasheng, and Shi Ruida, who were not far away, were shocked as well by what they saw. The former two were slightly better, as they could basically accept that, but Shi Ruida could not believe it no matter what. Even then, he sensed that Pang Chengwen’s aura was growing weaker. He was immediately burned with anxiety and began to crazily attack the array.
Chen Dasheng and Luo Yunshang’s faces turned pale. Hurriedly, they took out a few medicinal pills each and swallowed them, then continued to support the array.
Zhou Chuan gradually accepted the fact, and his eyes burned with extreme anger. A strange force began to spread through his body while layers of blue scales emerged across his skin, and his head grew narrower and pointier like the head of a snake.
“A demon cultivation technique?” Yunxiao frowned. Although this kind of cultivation technique was very powerful, few people learned it. The Toad Fiend Technique used by Li Wenshi on Mount Phoenix was also coming from the demon race.
“Oh? You also know about demon cultivation techniques? It seems you are not just an ordinary city lord!” After the transformation, Zhou Chuan emanated a demonic aura. Together with his python-like mystic weapon, they looked like two giant snakes. It was a frightening sight to behold.
“Hmph! There are millions of human cultivation techniques, and they all are the best in the world! Only fools will cultivate these cultivation techniques used by beasts!” Yunxiao said disdainfully.
“Death is upon you, boy, so stop talking like you know everything! Now that you’ve forced me to reveal my true-form, your death is imminent!”
“Ten Thousand Snakes!” Zhou Chuan roared as he darted out, agile as a snake, swinging the sword in his hand so fast that it seemed the void was fully packed with snakes.
“You are no match for me even when you were in your human form, so why do you think you can turn the tables by transforming into a beast?”
Yunxiao slightly bent his body forward and placed his right hand behind his back. Next, a sword appeared in his grip. All of a sudden, a sheet of blood-red light emerged in the air, and then a tiger roar rang out and towered into the sky.
“The sword of Tigertooth, the Song of Blue Lotus Sword!”
A tiger roar shook the entire mountain forest!
A giant shadow of a blue snake and a blood-red tiger slammed into one another, and they both broke apart and scattered under the great impact, with the faint roars of a tiger still ringing in the air. Yunxiao and Zhou Chuan were instantly drowned by the blast waves as the powerful energy swept out in all directions.
Zhou Chuan sprayed out a mouthful of blood while a cold smile emerged on his snake head. ‘Even my demon body can’t withstand such great power, let alone a mere five-stars Martial Master! He must be dead now!’
Swoosh!
But at that moment, he heard a terrible sound and saw Yunxiao, bare-chested, run toward him with the sword lifted high. The air, which had turned super hot due to the energy blast, was cut in half as the sword moved like a bolt of lightning and slashed down at him.
He sucked in a cold breath as he looked at Yunxiao’s smooth and fair skin. “How’s that possible! Under such a tremendous impact, how come you don’t even have a cut?”
Yunxiao would not explain to him, of course. Shocked, Zhou Chuan lifted his spirit snake sword to counter the attack. After the impact just now, the sword had turned back to the form of its first unseal, which looked like a tiny snake now.
Clang!
Two swords collided, and sparks flew.
Zhou Chuan’s heart jerked. ‘This is a fourth-tier sword that can be unsealed twice, and yet it is now used to cut another sword! What a waste!’
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The swords crossed three more times. Blasts of great force smashed down on him, rocking his chest and making him feel like vomiting blood. But, what pained him were the tiny chips along the edge of his sword caused by the repeated cutting. His opponent, on the other hand, did not seem to cherish his sword as much, as he lifted it once again like it were just an ordinary hacking knife.
Bam!
The hack seemed to be brought down with all the might, as it almost knocked Zhou Chuan’s sword out of his grip and forced him back several steps. He was deeply terrified. ‘How could this boy still have such great power!’ His gaze fell on his sword, and what he saw made his heart bleed: chips as big as peas, and the last cut even left a tiny crack on the blade.
‘Crazy, this is crazy!’ A glimmer of madness flashed in Zhou Chuan’s eyes. ‘I have to do it! I have no other choice now! If I lose the Cauldron of Five Elements, I won’t be able to die when I get back even if I wish I could!’ There was a determined look in his eyes as he took out a pale green pill and shoved it into his mouth.
“Two Martial Lords!” Shi Ruida was shocked at first, but when he discovered their cultivation base, he put his heart back to his chest. Besides, although he was inside the array, he did not suffer any attack, nor was his power weakened at all. While fuming, he cried out, “You’re looking to die!”
His bulging robe exploded abruptly as streams of Primordial Qi shot out of him like bullets, flying away in all directions.
Bam!
Bam!
Bam!
All of them fell onto the four sides of the array, blocked by waves of invisible forces, and exploded. The air rippled with each explosion like the surface of the water. Surprisingly, none of the attacks could break through the array.
Luo Yunshang and Chen Dasheng, who were guarding the array, were slightly taken aback by the attack, but their eyes were full of shock and great joy. In the beginning, they did not have high hopes on this simple Four Quadrants Array, and yet, it did manage to trap a Martial King! Although a significant amount of their Primordial Qi was consumed under the attack just now, if calculated at this rate, they should have no problem trapping him for the time it took for half an incense stick to burn.
“What!” Shi Ruida’s face fell. “I’m trapped by two Martial Lords in an array? This is ridiculous!” He began to attack crazily. Chen Dasheng and Luo Yunshang’s face grew paler with each attack, but the array was impregnable, no matter how fierce the attacks were.
Zhou Chuan’s face grew uglier as he watched Xiao Qingwang fly toward Pang Chengwen. He ground his teeth and said, “I understand now. Your plan was to make us abandon our chariot with an illusion, then trap Shi Ruida in an array. And when that Xiao Qingwang kills Pang Chengwen, he will come back to kill Shi Ruida. What a brilliant plan! So, what about my opponent? Although I’m just a one-star Great Martial Master, I’m sure you’ve arranged someone to deal with me.”
Yunxiao laughed. “Be patient! My strategy is to delay as much as possible until Qingwang kills one of them.”
Zhou Chuan’s eyes gleamed with a strong killing intent. A mystic weapon appeared in his hand, and then he rushed toward Yunxiao with it while shouting, “It seems that you are indeed the leader of these people! I’ll kill you first, then save Shi Ruida, and finally kill that Xiao Qingwang!”
He knew at once where his chance lay. The odds between them were even, depending on whether Pang Chengwen was killed first or Shi Ruida was released first. If the two Martial Kings could join hands, Xiao Qingwang would definitely lose.
“Hehe! Why are you so impatient? If I am not wrong, the Cauldron of Five Elements is with you, isn’t it?” Yunxiao lightly kicked the ground and drifted backward like a fallen leaf.
Zhou Chuan was horrified. He could not understand how Yunxiao guessed that. Any normal person would think that something so valuable must be with the strongest man. Unfortunately for him, Yunxiao was not a normal person.
His attack was only a decoy. He looked around warily, because he thought Yunxiao must have arranged someone else to deal with him. The reason why that person had not shown up should be because they did not have the confidence in defeating him, so they were delaying the time as much as possible.
“You don’t have to look around. There is no one else.” Yunxiao chuckled and said, “All the people I arranged have shown up, so I’ll have to deal with you myself.”
“Hmph! I don’t believe you!” cried Zhou Chuan in a cold voice. Meanwhile, he swung his sword faster and harder, but he soon found out that he could not touch even the edges of Yunxiao’s clothes, which terrified him.
‘Does he really have no other plans?’ Looking at Yunxiao’s calm face, Zhou Chuan grew anxious and doubtful. “Unseal!” At the shout, his mystic weapon transformed into a spirit snake, darting back and forth rapidly within its range of attack. It moved so fast that it seemed like an offensive technique that covered a wide area. This kind of sword technique was exactly the bane of some magical movement techniques.
Slightly surprised, Yunxiao moved even faster with Nether Swap, avoiding the sword within a very narrow space. That stunned Zhou Chuan, and only then did he really believe what the other said. ‘He should have no other plans due to limited manpower, and this movement technique alone is more than enough for him to delay the time.’
“Since you are so confident, let’s see how you will avoid my attack next! Unseal!”
Zhou Chuan shouted again. The spirit snake sword in his hand burst into a flash of light as it suddenly expanded rapidly, growing at least seven or eight times larger in the blink of an eye into a huge python-like weapon, and then biting down toward Yunxiao.
“A second unseal?” Yunxiao was startled, and he immediately began to reassess the strength of the Zhou family. Only a mystic weapon of the fourth-tier or above could be unsealed a second time, and it could only be refined by an alchemist of the fifth-tier or above.
The fact that Zhou Chuan, who was only a steward with the cultivation base of a Great Martial Master, had such a high-level mystic weapon showed the terrible power and heritage of the Zhou family. At the same time, it also proved that this family was an existence that the current Yanwu could not afford to offend.
Looking at the approaching python-like mystic weapon, Yunxiao did not retreat or dodge, but kept performing various incantation gestures. Streams of golden gas emerged around him as it gathered and condensed in his palm into a huge golden seal, which he pushed out with all his might.
“Life passes like a dream, a mark left by goose claw in the snow. The Floating Life Seal!”
Bam!
Shafts of golden light broke out from his palm like a blooming golden lotus flower, blinding those who looked at it. The great python was instantly devoured by the light, and then it was knocked and thrown away amid wails.
‘What martial technique is this? How can it be so powerful!’ Zhou Chuan was stunned as his mystic weapon was knocked back. A great force rushed up the weapon and hit him, forcing him to step back repeatedly.
With a serious face, Yunxiao walked out of the golden light while his body emanated waves of Primordial Qi. “If this is all you got, everything will be over soon,” he said coldly.
‘His Primordial Qi waves are indeed that of a five-stars Martial Master, and yet he can knock away a full-power attack of my spirit snake sword! How did that happen!’ Zhou Chuan’s face was shocked and full of disbelief.
Luo Yunshang, Chen Dasheng, and Shi Ruida, who were not far away, were shocked as well by what they saw. The former two were slightly better, as they could basically accept that, but Shi Ruida could not believe it no matter what. Even then, he sensed that Pang Chengwen’s aura was growing weaker. He was immediately burned with anxiety and began to crazily attack the array.
Chen Dasheng and Luo Yunshang’s faces turned pale. Hurriedly, they took out a few medicinal pills each and swallowed them, then continued to support the array.
Zhou Chuan gradually accepted the fact, and his eyes burned with extreme anger. A strange force began to spread through his body while layers of blue scales emerged across his skin, and his head grew narrower and pointier like the head of a snake.
“A demon cultivation technique?” Yunxiao frowned. Although this kind of cultivation technique was very powerful, few people learned it. The Toad Fiend Technique used by Li Wenshi on Mount Phoenix was also coming from the demon race.
“Oh? You also know about demon cultivation techniques? It seems you are not just an ordinary city lord!” After the transformation, Zhou Chuan emanated a demonic aura. Together with his python-like mystic weapon, they looked like two giant snakes. It was a frightening sight to behold.
“Hmph! There are millions of human cultivation techniques, and they all are the best in the world! Only fools will cultivate these cultivation techniques used by beasts!” Yunxiao said disdainfully.
“Death is upon you, boy, so stop talking like you know everything! Now that you’ve forced me to reveal my true-form, your death is imminent!”
“Ten Thousand Snakes!” Zhou Chuan roared as he darted out, agile as a snake, swinging the sword in his hand so fast that it seemed the void was fully packed with snakes.
“You are no match for me even when you were in your human form, so why do you think you can turn the tables by transforming into a beast?”
Yunxiao slightly bent his body forward and placed his right hand behind his back. Next, a sword appeared in his grip. All of a sudden, a sheet of blood-red light emerged in the air, and then a tiger roar rang out and towered into the sky.
“The sword of Tigertooth, the Song of Blue Lotus Sword!”
A tiger roar shook the entire mountain forest!
A giant shadow of a blue snake and a blood-red tiger slammed into one another, and they both broke apart and scattered under the great impact, with the faint roars of a tiger still ringing in the air. Yunxiao and Zhou Chuan were instantly drowned by the blast waves as the powerful energy swept out in all directions.
Zhou Chuan sprayed out a mouthful of blood while a cold smile emerged on his snake head. ‘Even my demon body can’t withstand such great power, let alone a mere five-stars Martial Master! He must be dead now!’
Swoosh!
But at that moment, he heard a terrible sound and saw Yunxiao, bare-chested, run toward him with the sword lifted high. The air, which had turned super hot due to the energy blast, was cut in half as the sword moved like a bolt of lightning and slashed down at him.
He sucked in a cold breath as he looked at Yunxiao’s smooth and fair skin. “How’s that possible! Under such a tremendous impact, how come you don’t even have a cut?”
Yunxiao would not explain to him, of course. Shocked, Zhou Chuan lifted his spirit snake sword to counter the attack. After the impact just now, the sword had turned back to the form of its first unseal, which looked like a tiny snake now.
Clang!
Two swords collided, and sparks flew.
Zhou Chuan’s heart jerked. ‘This is a fourth-tier sword that can be unsealed twice, and yet it is now used to cut another sword! What a waste!’
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The swords crossed three more times. Blasts of great force smashed down on him, rocking his chest and making him feel like vomiting blood. But, what pained him were the tiny chips along the edge of his sword caused by the repeated cutting. His opponent, on the other hand, did not seem to cherish his sword as much, as he lifted it once again like it were just an ordinary hacking knife.
Bam!
The hack seemed to be brought down with all the might, as it almost knocked Zhou Chuan’s sword out of his grip and forced him back several steps. He was deeply terrified. ‘How could this boy still have such great power!’ His gaze fell on his sword, and what he saw made his heart bleed: chips as big as peas, and the last cut even left a tiny crack on the blade.
‘Crazy, this is crazy!’ A glimmer of madness flashed in Zhou Chuan’s eyes. ‘I have to do it! I have no other choice now! If I lose the Cauldron of Five Elements, I won’t be able to die when I get back even if I wish I could!’ There was a determined look in his eyes as he took out a pale green pill and shoved it into his mouth.
