Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
A deafening noise came. However, when the fight in the arena started, the others gradually quieted down.
All inner-order and outer-order disciples of Wudi City stared at the two men inside the arena.
They knew nothing about Du Longyang’s Immortal Slaying Plan. Therefore, they would not understand what impact Nie Changqing’s death would bring. In their eyes, Nie Changqing was just a stowaway under their City Master’s protection.
Without protection, he would definitely die.
He had killed so many disciples of Wudi City. The other disciples here certainly hated him to the core.
In the hall of Wudi City.
The Empress was sitting straight in a chair. Crossing her fair-skinned long legs, she burst out laughing. “Interesting. This man has a solid foundation. As a second-level Golden Elixir cultivator, the opponent he chose should have suited his level. Unfortunately, his opponent suddenly got a breakthrough and became a fourth-level Golden Elixir cultivator. Now…the best opponent for him has become a person strong enough to kill him,” the Empress remarked.
Du Longyang was speechless too. He was certainly smart enough to see Nie Changqing wanted to use Wudi City’s disciple Yang Kun to train himself.
However, since Yang Kun had realized a breakthrough, Nie Changqing’s plan was totally frustrated.
“Well, if this man’s life is really threatened, let’s just intervene to save him. The Immortal Slaying Plan can in no way be impeded because of him,” Master Yuanshang said.
The three people’s conversation did not last for a long time. Soon enough, they sat in their chairs quietly.
They started to pay attention to the fight in the arena.
In the life-or-death challenge.
Nie Changqing was a little helpless too. He had not expected Yang Kun to realize a breakthrough.
However, Nie Changqing did not flinch. Since he was already here, he would go on with the fight!
Nie Changqing’s eyes were like two flaming torches. He held the Dragon Slaying Knife tightly, and then he charged out toward the enemy.
His knife spirit surged. He brandished Dragon Slaying Knife, and countless rays of light broke out.
Fortunately, with the help of the Dragon Slaying Knife, he could more or less narrow the gap in their strength.
And Nie Changqing was cultivating in the Heavenly Locks, so he could use Qi and blood. He still had a chance!
Ting! Ting! Ting!
The sound of metals clashing echoed in the arena.
Nie Changqing and Yang Kun were exchanging blows like crazy. The spear kept colliding with the black knife. Numerous sparks broke out.
Although Yang Kun’s weapon was not as good as Nie Changqing’s, he was totally at an advantage when they were exchanging blows. That was exactly the suppression resulted from the gap in their abilities.
Nie Changqing was a second-level Heavenly Lock, which was similar to second-level Golden Elixir.
But a little bit stronger than second-level Golden Elixir. However, that advantage was not very obvious.
Lu Fan once said Heavenly Lock’s advantage over Golden Elixir was more obvious in later stages.
In later stages, Heavenly Lock cultivators were much stronger than Golden Elixir cultivators. That was how Heavenly Lock’s power was embodied.
If Internal Organs were to dig the treasures in the human body, Heavenly Lock was to explore the limits of the human body.
Bang!
Nie Changqing evolved the metal element and merged it with his knife energy so that his knife energy would be much more destructive.
He struck down. The knife shone so brilliantly that it seemed to intend to break the ground.
Yang Kun was less aggressive but more stable. He knew Nie Changqing was strong, so he had never looked down on the latter. Nie Changqing had managed to all the disciples of Wudi City who had pursued him despite their significant number. He should not be underestimated indeed.
The fight in the arena was fierce. Both of them went all out in the end.
Nie Changqing had been at a disadvantage during the whole fight. The spear left several holes in his body, and he was bleeding a lot. He really looked very miserable.
The result seemed to have come out already.
“It’s said Senior Brother Yang Kun is going to challenge the top cultivator list. He has prepared thoroughly indeed.”
“It’s still a little difficult to get onto the top cultivator list as a fourth-level Golden Elixir cultivator. Even if he succeeds, he will just be ranked last…”
“But Senior Brother Yang Kun might be able to gain more insight and realize another breakthrough if he kills this stowaway.”
Many disciples of Wudi City who were watching the fight seemed to be relaxed.
At that moment, even idiots could see that Nie Changqing had reached his limit and was just forcing himself to hold on because he did not want to be defeated.
There was no way Nie Changqing could turn the tide. Yang Kun, who had the ambition to get onto the top cultivator list, was cautious and steady.
He did not show any flaws. Nor did he give Nie Changqing any chance to fight back.
******
Outside of Wudi City.
The wind was blowing, and the snow was falling heavily on the ground.
Mo Tianyu looked very worried. He was feeling more and more uneasy…
He was sitting in the snow. A thick layer of snow had accumulated on his bamboo hat.
He told a fortune for Nie Changqing, but the hexagram turned out to be a small blessing, which was not very good.
“Alas…”
Mo Tianyu let out a sigh.
He grasped three copper coins in his hand.
He threw them up gently. The copper coins showed the hexagram of small blessing.
Mo Tianyu was a little annoyed. He extended his hand to disarrange the hexagram of small blessing.
However, as soon as he did that…
Mo Tianyu felt his body was suddenly shaking.
A warm current flowed out of his nostril. He got a nosebleed.
Several hairs fell from his bamboo hat.
Mo Tianyu looked like he was suddenly in a daze.
He covered his chest. It felt the same as the last time when he was on the island.
It seemed like a backfire?
More than that.
As his blood flowed out of his nose, Mo Tianyu’s energy started to surge as well. In the next second, a Spirit Qi swirl showed up over his head.
He achieved Internal Organs at this moment!
Mo Tianyu was shocked.
What was that?
How could he have broken through despite the backfire?
The backfire last time helped him reach Peak Qi Core. And this time, it helped him get rid of the restrictions of Qi Core and achieve Internal Organs.
Would his breakthrough always be so painful?
******
In Wudi City.
Nie Changqing’s white robe was completely stained with blood. He looked serious and reluctant to accept the failure.
He did not want to die!
Nie Shuang and Ru’er were still expecting him to go back. So was the Young Master.
But he could lose his life here!
However, Yang Kun was so strong and so steady that Nie Changqing was really frustrated because he could not find any chance to fight back at all.
Maybe Yang Kun’s attacks were not that powerful, but his steadiness was like a turtle carrying a thick and heavy shell. Nie Changqing could not find any flaw at all.
“Knife Control!” Nie Changqing growled. His eyes narrowed.
The Dragon Slaying Knife moved upward from the ground, leaving a brilliant ray of light in the air.
Yang Kun’s legs were rooted in the arena. He raised his spear. The spear sparkled.
Bang!
A Spirit Qi fluctuation broke out.
Nie Changqing was sent flying several miles in the arena.
However, as soon as the Spirit Qi fluctuation stopped…
Yang Kun charged forward. He pointed his spear at Nie Changqing, intending to pierce it through the center of the latter’s forehead.
This attack was extremely aggressive.
This was the chance Yang Kun had been looking for…
An attack to secure his victory!
Outside of the arena.
The disciples of Wudi City all burst out laughing, as if the result had come out.
Ye Qianxun, who was also watching the fight, got to his feet. He was bored. He turned around to leave.
Du Longyang, sensing the situation in the arena, let out a sigh.
It was over.
In the arena.
Yang Kun’s eyes were like two flaming torches. His spear went toward Nie Changqing. He was going to pierce the spear into the middle of Nie Changqing’s forehead and nail the latter to the ground.
Nie Changqing felt threatened. He smelled death in this crisis.
He felt extremely cold.
He grasped the Dragon Slaying Knife automatically and threw it over toward the spear.
Yang Kun was not affected by the Dragon Slaying Knife thrown over by Nie Changqing at all.
How would such a hasty knife attack be compared to his extremely aggressive and decisive spear attack?
There would be only one result.
His spear would pierce through Nie Changqing’s head and kill the latter.
Ting!
The fight between Nie Changqing and Yang Kun had lasted for quite some time. Yang Kun’s spear was not a match for the Dragon Slaying Knife. It already had many notches on it.
And this hasty knife attack of Nie Changqing’s happened to strike the weakest part of the spear, a notch that could not bear any more blows.
Crack…
A silvery sound came.
Yang Kun’s spear broke.
Yang Kun was shocked. The aggressive energy contained in the spear suddenly became stagnant, like a galloping horse whose legs were suddenly cut off.
Yang Kun spit up blood.
Nie Changqing was astonished too…
However, although it was only a split second, Nie Changqing seized the opportunity. A surprisingly aggressive energy broke out.
With the magnificent Qi and blood and the great roar of his spine, the Dragon Slaying Knife was thrown over decisively. Even the air seemed to be broken.
Poof!
Nie Changqing’s knife attack was very decisive. It cut across Yang Kun’s head like a ferocious beast who had just woken up.
Yang Kun was still in shock caused by the damage of his spear, and his head was cut off by this knife attack as threatening as thunders and bolts of lightning!
It was eerily quiet.
Outside of the arena.
Those disciples of Wudi City, who had intended to leave, all froze up.
Ye Qianxun, on his way back, also sensed there was something wrong. He turned around immediately and happened to see Yang Kun’s head cut off by Nie Changqing’s knife.
This…
How was this possible?
Yang Kun had put all of his strength into that last spear attack, and he had seized the best timing. How come he was defeated instead?
How did Nie Changqing make it?
In the hall.
Du Longyang was astonished.
Then his face slightly turned black.
“This man is really lucky…”
“That hasty knife attack of his struck the weakness of Yang Kun’s spear. Yang Kun’s momentum was interrupted when the spear broke apart. If it were not for that, Nie Changqing would have been dead.”
Du Longyang pulled a long face. Even he was shocked by Nie Changqing’s counterattack.
Nie Changqing won, but it was not because he was strong enough. In terms of strength, Nie Changqing was not a match for Yang Kun. But in that last moment, Yang Kun’s momentum backfired on himself, and Nie Changqing seized the chance…
A counterattack.
There was no chance for Du Longyang to intervene at all.
The Empress and Master Yuanshang’s facial expressions were a little weird.
They had to admit Nie Changqing was really lucky…
In the life-or-death challenge.
Nie Changqing was panting heavily.
Looking at Yang Kun, he stood up with the aid of the Dragon Slaying Knife.
The victory did not make him happy at all.
He was still too weak. He found that spear’s weakness by luck and then broke it, which then obstructed Yang Kun’s attack, thus backfiring on himself. If it were not for that, Nie Changqing would absolutely have been defeated…
But he would not be so lucky every time.
Nie Changqing wiped the blood off his mouth and nose. He, like a man made of blood, walked out of the arena slowly.
It caused an uproar among the inner-order and outer-order disciples of Wudi City.
A heated discussion started. They were angry and indignant.
But Nie Changqing did not bother to pay attention to them.
He staggered out of Wudi City.
The disciples of Wudi City wanted to stop him.
However…
An angry voice burst forth in Wudi City.
“Enough!”
“Haven’t you been humiliated enough?!”
It was Du Longyang’s voice.
The disciples of Wudi City were all frightened. They dared not stop Nie Changqing anymore.
However, they were still unconvinced.
Ye Qianxun saw Nie Changqing disappearing from his sight. Something was stirring in him.
Nie Changqing did not look back.
One step after another, he staggered out of the gate of Wudi City in the heavy snow and disappeared.
Outside of the city.
Mo Tianyu saw Nie Changqing, covered with blood, walk out.
Happy to see Nie Changqing, he went to support the latter with a hand and left with the latter together immediately, because he was afraid the enemy of Wudi City would chase them.
“You won?” Mo Tianyu asked tentatively.
Nie Changqing nodded.
Mo Tianyu was blinking. It looked he had guessed it right. The hexagram had backfired.
And that backfire helped Nie Changqing win the victory.
It was also because of the backfire of his hexagram that Kong Nanfei survived last time. However, the backfire of Nie Changqing’s small blessing was not so powerful as Kong Nanfei’s great blessing.
Mo Tianyu’s eyes lit up more and more. The more he analyzed, the more he was thrilled. He seemed to find his way!
“What’s your next plan?” Mo Tianyu asked Nie Changqing.
“Recover and then go back when my injuries have healed,” Nie Changqing answered.
He was going to find out his weaknesses and improve himself in the Trial Pagoda.
He would come back to Wudi City again.
He felt this victory was not something he could be proud at all, but next time, he would absolutely defeat his enemy with his own strength!
“Okay!”
Mo Tianyu nodded.
He was full of questions, and he wanted to go back to consult Young Master Lu.
Almost no one in the world could resolve his doubts. Maybe only the mysterious Young Master Lu in White Jade City could.
Nie Changqing and Mo Tianyu went back into the cave.
They did not move in five whole days.
Nie Changqing was recovering from his injuries, while Mo Tianyu was consolidating his attainments.
Finally.
Five days later.
Nie Changqing had recovered from his injuries. He walked out of the cave together with Mo Tianyu.
The two went back to the ruined temple in the snow.
They went into the temple, went through the wall of air, and returned to South County.
******
Water suddenly splashed in the running river.
In the water.
Spirit Qi gathered and turned into tiny Lu Fan wearing a hat. Stepping on a fallen leaf, he seemed to be surfing.
The Monster Realm was not far away from the Great Qian Matriarchal Empire.
Tiny Lu Fan traveled for five days along the river to reach the edge of the Monster Realm.
Stepping on the fallen leaf, tiny Lu Fan was looking at the gray sky in the distance.
He looked serious.
The river ahead seemed to be shrouded in a black fog, and he sensed a dreadfully weird Qi.
“Monstrous Qi?”
“Feels like polluted Spirit Qi,” Tiny Lu Fan murmured.
Then, with the fallen leaf as his boat, he sailed into that thick fog.
The fog was very thick.
The wind and waves sounded like people’s whining or crazy roars.
Tiny Lu Fan, transformed by Spirit Fluid, was super pure and clear. He was really incompatible with the Monstrous Qi around him.
About half a day had passed. Tiny Lu Fan finally sailed out of the thick fog and entered the Monster Realm.
It was Tengen Continent’s forbidden area, the Monster Clan’s territory.
The Monster Clan’s territory was merely a plain. At first glance, there were neither rising mountains nor sunk valleys.
Countless monstrous energies were surging into swirls and gathering at the center of the Monster Realm.
Its center was a tall pagoda with a pinnacle. It was very old and in ruins as if it was just a bunch of sharp stones piled up casually.
That must be the legendary Heavenly Monster Pagoda.
Lu Fan was not very interested in the Heavenly Monster Pagoda.
Tiny Lu Fan looked around. Soon enough, he noticed some weird creatures staring at him.
Some of them were beasts walking on all fours. They were primordial demonic beasts.
Others looked like demonic beasts, but they walked upright. These were from the Monster Clan.
However, there were not many of them. They were even as lean as a rake because of starvation. Their energies were very weak. In the dangerous Monster Realm, these monsters were on the verge of dying.
Stepping on the leaf and looking at the demonic beasts and monsters, tiny Lu Fan touched his chin. He glanced over at them and gave off a golden light from his eyes to collect samples of the Monster Clan.
All of a sudden.
Over that tall Heavenly Monster Pagoda, the rich Monstrous Qi turned into a giant swirl.
In the midst of the Monstrous Qi, an eyeball that had been created in a burning black fire suddenly emerged.
That eyeball had flames in it. It seemed to be devouring everything.
While it was rolling…
That eyeball fixed on tiny Lu Fan, who was transformed by Spirit Fluid.
A shriek seemed to come.
Then it turned into a pitch-black monster claw that moved across the air and charged down.
Tiny Lu Fan, in the middle of scanning samples, were caught without knowing what had happened. He was taken into the Heavenly Monster Pagoda.
******
Lake Island, Beiluo.
Lu Fan, who was drinking the green plum wine leisurely, almost spit out the wine he had just drunk.
Who was that? Did he have to be so passionate?