The cracks on the golden light membrane quickly spread under Jiang Li’s heavy fist. The Core Formation cultivator still wanted to activate his artifact to restore the light barrier, but it was already too late!
Bang!
The thin screen of light shattered abruptly. Jiang Li’s fist that revealed pale white bones finally came into contact with his opponent’s body, as it struck his stomach, the entire fist became dislocated from the wrist.
The physical strength of a Core Formation cultivator was far from what an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator could compare to, but under Jiang Li’s fist, he could not help but spit out a mouthful of blood.
“Wait… wait a minute… I…”
The powerful Core Formation realm cultivator was instantly awakened by this punch. His fury and killing intent immediately turned to fear.
He was just about to ask for mercy when Jiang Li punched him in the chest again.
“It’s not over yet!”
Jiang Li did not intend to give the other party a chance to beg for mercy. Four vines suddenly stretched out from his back and wrapped around the other party’s limbs. Then, the vines tightened, pulling the two of them together until they were only an arm’s length apart.
The Core Formation realm cultivator from the Immortal Ascension Pavilion was pulled by the vines and could not even fly back. In the next moment, fists rained down on him.
The intense pain instantly swept through his entire body, soon turning into numbness. He lost all feeling in his body, and the skin, flesh, bones, and even internal organs were suffering the continuous destruction of the terrifying force.
There was only the Void Core left, firmly protecting his soul in his body. Otherwise, with such a barrage of fists, his soul would have dissipated already.
Jiang Li’s final punch struck the other party’s eye socket, and the few bones that formed the eye socket shattered directly. The eyeball was filled with blood and deformed, and it was almost smashed by the punch.
The powerful body of the Core Formation cultivator softened like a rag!
The Core Formation cultivator whose name he still did not know until now had finally been defeated by Jiang Li’s iron fist.
At this point, Jiang Li heaved a sigh of relief and couldn’t help but sigh with emotion.
Core Formation cultivators were indeed in the Core Formation realm. They were really very strong.
There was a considerable gap between the strength of a Foundation Establishment cultivator and those under it.
His opponent was only at the Void Core stage of the Core Formation realm, and he was just an ordinary cultivator who was not good at fighting in the Immortal Ascension Pavilion. Even so, he still caused such a huge pressure on Jiang Li.
Before the start of the competition, Jiang Li’s overall combat strength had already been at the top of the Foundation Establishment realm, and he had obtained the third place in the sect martial arts competition.
After arriving at the Medicine Garden Mystic Realm, Jiang Li had gone into seclusion to cultivate and consume the Earth Fruits. Later on, during the battle, he had also swallowed a Golden Core and burned his blood essence.
In a short period of time, Jiang Li relied on his previous accumulation to greatly increase his strength three times in a row before he finally defeated an opponent of this level.
The difference in his strength before and after this increase was extremely large.
When he fought against Foundation Establishment cultivators, the few blood tattoos he had were enough to beat them. It was not as difficult as today’s fight.
It could be seen that the further one went on the path of cultivation, the greater the gap between realms would be.
If the other party’s cultivation was a little stronger, such as having reached the True Core stage, Jiang Li would probably have no choice but to release his Nine Nether clone to save him.
Jiang Li cautiously checked again. Only after discovering that the other party had completely lost consciousness did he withdraw his fist.
The feeling of his fists hitting on solid flesh was indeed stimulating. It was much more comfortable than hitting a defensive membrane. The flesh on his hand had already healed.
He used the vines to carry the other party and released the Dragon Imprisoning Lock from the coffin to tie him up. Only then did he pull the dying guy to the ground.
“Master!”
As soon as he landed, Huangfu Tai took a few steps forward and bowed respectfully.
At his feet, the two Foundation Establishment realm cultivators who had just been sent flying by Jiang Li were also tied up and thrown there.
This fellow understood Jiang Li’s thoughts quite well.
After throwing the Core Formation cultivators in his hands to the ground, Jiang Li took out three spiritual root seeds from the coffin and fed them.
These three spiritual root seeds did not have much cultivation base, but they had been injected with a lot of wood attribute vitality that could help quickly recover from injuries.
He might have some use for them.
…
A few minutes later, in a forest in the inner region of the Misty Mountain Region, a crimson bolt of lightning rose into the sky.
After passing through the fog, a light source appeared in the sky.
The fog covered area of the Misty Mountain Range was, after all, for the sake of the Medicine Garden Mystic Realm. It was naturally impossible to prevent sunlight from entering. Therefore, although the fog and clouds in the sky were thick, the effect of blocking light was actually one-sided.
The scene inside could not be seen from the outside, but inside the Medicine Garden Mystic Realm, one could clearly see the sky above.
At this moment, the lightning cracker emitted a red glow in the sky, instantly attracting the gazes of many people.
This was especially true for those cultivators on the platform of the Grand Competition. All of them saw it and quickly noticed the abnormality.
This lightning cracker was a special model of the competition authority, so it was quickly recognized.
This kind of signal was usually used to seek help, and the special lightning cracker was only distributed to a few disciples of the large sects.
This meant that a disciple of a large sect was requesting help!
The big shots of the various sects who were watching the battle looked at each other’s expressions. Clearly, they did not look happy.
These old fellows had not died yet, but someone dared to touch their juniors right under their noses!
Under such a grand occasion, there was actually someone who dared to commit evil. If this matter was not dealt with severely, it would not intimidate those people with ill intentions. When the disciples went out in the future, they would be completely bullied by these rogue cultivators!
Without any words, more than a hundred spiritual lights flew towards the direction of the signal. Under each ray of light, there were existences that even Jiang Li could not match.
On the Scripture Storage Valley’s side, Elder He, who was leading the team, felt uncomfortable after not exercising for a long time. He let the two masters of the Hall of Rejuvenation and the Foreign Affairs Hall stand guard while he brought Chu Yunxuan along and also transformed into a stream of light.
Dozens of sects and hundreds of spiritual lights appeared outside the forest one after another.
Then, they saw a figure with tattered clothes running through the air towards the outer area of the forest.
Behind him, four figures pursued relentlessly.
The leader in the rear even threw out artifacts at the fleeing figure from time to time. It was obvious that he had strong killing intent.
“It’s Junior Brother Jiang Li!”
“Damn you! Do you think you can bully our Scripture Storage Valley’s disciple? Square Heaven Seal!”
After seeing Jiang Li, Chu Yunxuan changed his usual calm and humble appearance. He shook his hand and threw out a golden square seal.
The golden seal was extremely swift, and it brushed past Jiang Li who was flying ahead. After that, its size suddenly rose explosively, and it smashed towards the people behind him.
Jiang Li was running when he was suddenly shocked by the terrifying might that erupted from behind.
Even though he was not the target and had not been locked onto, he still felt a strong threat despite being so close. His hair stood on end and he instinctively wanted to stay away from the golden seal.
The four ‘good friends’ behind him were not so lucky. From the strongest Core Formation realm cultivator to the weakest Huangfu Tai, they were all enveloped in the attack range.
They wanted to escape, but it was not that simple.
If the Square Heaven Seal was only used to smash people, how could it be considered the ultimate technique of the Scripture Storage Valley?
If one practiced it to the limit, under the envelopment of the Square Heaven Seal, even heaven and earth would be locked down. There would be no place to escape!
Chu Yunxuan’s Square Heaven Seal was naturally not so powerful, but it was virtually impossible for ordinary cultivators to escape from his seal.
The three people with weaker cultivation levels were bound and oppressed by an invisible force at this moment. They stood on the spot and were practically unable to move a finger.
Only the Void Core realm cultivator could move slightly. He bitterly raised his golden abacus and waited for death.
Even Jiang Li could only mourn for them as he looked at the golden seal and felt sorry for his spiritual root seed.
However, the golden light reflected by the raised abacus attracted the attention of two of the cultivators.
They were naturally the two big shots of the Immortal Ascension Pavilion.
When they saw the Spiritual Calculation Golden Abacus that only the Immortal Ascension Pavilion’s elders could possess, they already felt that something was amiss. Then, they saw the weak Qi Refinement cultivator flying at the back.
Both of their expressions turned ugly.
Oh no! Why did this Young Master Huangfu come here to participate!
Without any time to think, the two of them hurriedly attacked, intending to stop the terrifying golden seal.
The two figures crossed the distance in an instant and caught up to the golden seal.
The person flying at the front was dressed in a scholarly robe. He held a fan in his hand and opened it, wanting to stop the gigantic golden seal.
This person was none other than the current Pavilion Master of the Great Mountain Branch of the Immortal Ascension Pavilion. He was a renowned expert in the cultivation world of the Great Mountain.
Jiang Li remembered that his surname was Sun, and his cultivation was that of a dignified Nascent Soul cultivator!
Jiang Li who was the closest to him only saw the word ‘Peace’ written on the fan of the middle aged man in long robes. He waved it lightly at the golden seal at a seemingly slow but rapid speed.
From the way he carried himself, an ordinary person might think he could not even chase away a fly.
However, there was a mysterious rhythm as he moved the fan. It was as if the huge Square Heaven Seal was not worth mentioning in front of him.
After all, compared to a Nascent Soul cultivator, the difference in Chu Yunxuan’s cultivation was too great. If the power of the Square Heaven Seal was insufficient, it would be very difficult to gain any advantage in a confrontation.
However, it was not as if only the younger generation had come from the Scripture Storage Valley!
The scene before Jiang Li’s eyes flashed, and then a familiar robust figure appeared before the middle aged man.
“Pavilion Master Sun! What are you doing?!”
Elder He grabbed his right wrist with one hand, making his fan unable to move at all.
With his other hand, he grabbed the other party’s collar and stared at him fiercely from top to bottom like a gangster fighting.
Behind him, nine terrifying beast shadows suddenly appeared and roared angrily at the middle-aged man in long robes. Elder He attacked bravely, shocking the other party until they did not move. They could only order another elder from the Immortal Ascension Pavilion with a stern expression.
“Elder Wang, save him!”
In fact, there was no need for him to say anything. The middle-aged female cultivator who rushed out with him did not stop at all.
This middle-aged female cultivator was a Golden Core elder who led the team from the Immortal Ascension Pavilion headquarters. Her duty was to ensure the safety of the four disciples.
At this moment, how could she dare to hesitate? She used all her strength to charge towards the golden seal.
Her cultivation was inferior to the Pavilion Master’s, so she did not dare to let her guard down when facing Chu Yunxuan’s Square Heaven Seal.
However, behind her were Huangfu Tai and the others. If she used powerful artifacts to counterattack without any hesitation, the aftershock would spread and the people behind her would definitely die.
Therefore, there was nothing she could do. She could only activate her protective artifact and use herself as a shield to directly block it.
However, as soon as she made contact, the pressure coming from the Square Heaven Seal made her expression change drastically.
Despite her cultivation level and strength, she, a Golden Core cultivator, was actually unable to stop this large golden seal.
Looking at the four people behind her who were getting closer and closer, Elder Jin could only grit her teeth and erupt her spiritual qi. She resisted the golden Square Heaven Seal and forcefully moved dozens of meters to the side, letting the people behind her pass.
After the Square Heaven Seal was moved away, the four people immediately relaxed. However, Huangfu Tai, who was in the Qi Refinement realm, no longer had the strength to fly. He directly fell from the sky. The other three people hurriedly landed on the ground together. Before many high-level cultivators, they did not know what to do.
The four people escaped with their lives, but Elder Jin was very unlucky herself. She was suppressed by the golden seal and could not escape. She did not have the slightest chance to escape as she fell from the sky to the ground.
In the end, the Square Heaven Seal crashed to the ground. She spat out a mouthful of blood and could only kneel under the golden seal. She could not escape at all.
Chu Yunxuan’s cultivation was definitely stronger than the Core Formation cultivator Jiang Li had defeated, but he should not have reached the Golden Core stage. According to Jiang Li’s guess, there was a high chance that he was around the True Core stage.
In terms of cultivation, there was a considerable gap between the two.
However, under the circumstances of forcefully facing the ultimate technique of the sect, the other party was still suppressed without any room for maneuver and was almost defeated in one move.
From this, it could be seen how powerful the Square Heaven Seal was.
At this moment, Elder He also pushed aside the Pavilion Master of the Great Mountain Branch of the Immortal Ascension Pavilion. His burly figure appeared beside Jiang Li in a flash.
“Master!”
Jiang Li immediately bowed with an excited expression. This master of his was quite impressive.
Initially, he had released a lightning cracker, but he had only planned to call a few organizers to maintain order and witness the Immortal Ascension Pavilion pursuing him. He wanted to see if he could extort the Immortal Ascension Pavilion again.
He did not expect to call so many people over. It really surprised him.
His backing was stronger than the other party’s, which made him feel very comfortable.
“You used the secret technique?”
Elder He saw a special skin color after the redness vanished from Jiang Li’s body. He even saw through the torn disciple uniform and noted that the Dragon Tortoise Blood Tattoo was about to disappear on Jiang Li’s body, so he naturally guessed what was going on.
The beast roar in his voice was even more obvious now. He looked at the few people on the ground and his expression was as dark as the bottom of a pot. Clearly, he was very angry!
After all, in his opinion, although the secret technique of burning blood essence would not cause permanent damage, the loss of a large amount of blood essence was unavoidable. Moreover, there would be a period of weakness after this. Coupled with the fact that the Dragon Tortoise Blood Tattoo was about to disappear, Jiang Li’s loss this time could not be said to be small.
Not to mention that it was currently the Great Mountain Cultivator Competition. This incident would affect Jiang Li’s combat strength greatly, and it might even directly affect his ranking in the competition.
The Immortal Ascension Pavilion had deliberately done such a thing. They were too vicious!
“Yes, Master. The situation was urgent and I had no choice.”
Jiang Li was stunned when he saw his master’s angry expression, and then he recovered from his shock.
Since his Blood Essence Ignition status had appeared, it was naturally impossible for him to let it run out. In theory, the side effects after the status ended had nothing to do with him.
However, he could not stay in the state of reddened skin.
This was just like how the beast blood tattoo would slowly disappear. After burning his blood essence, the redness on his skin would naturally fade away.
The cheat only retained the effects of the status. Other than that, physical modifications such as the remnants of pills in his stomach and the circulation of the various spells would dissipate with the passage of time.
Even after checking, nobody could find anything abnormal about him.
Therefore, in Elder He’s eyes, Jiang Li’s situation was a typical display of burning his blood essence.
His favorite disciple had been attacked and had been forced to use a secret technique. If not for that lightning cracker, he might have died in this attack.
Under such circumstances, how could Elder He not be angry! How could he not kill?
Elder He raised his hand and slapped out. A huge palm print directly appeared in the air and slapped down, wanting to directly crush the four people into minced meat.
Jiang Li’s eyes revealed a pained expression once more. These four people were his ‘good friends’, and they would be really unlucky to be slapped to death because of a mere show.
However, Elder He was standing up for him. It was impossible for him to stop his master from doing so. He could only sigh in pity.
“Elder He, please show mercy!”
A fan appeared again. The ‘Peace’ ink character on the fan shone, stopping the palm print. In the end, it turned into a gust of wind and dissipated.
However, it could be seen that Pavilion Master Sun’s figure still involuntarily took two steps back. It looked like he still suffered a little loss.
“Elder He, please calm down. The truth is still unclear. Please put away your technique. Peace is most precious. Let’s sit down and talk peacefully, how about it?”
The middle-aged man, Pavilion Master Sun, had suffered a loss under Elder He’s hands just now. Even his collar had been tugged. He had been humiliated, but because he could not win, he could only bite the bullet and smile.
He believed that he was a Pavilion Master after all. His current attitude was already giving the other party enough respect. The other party should also be “tactful”.
As he spoke, he waved his fan again, intending to break free from the golden seal and rescue Elder Jin first.
However, when had Elder He ever been “tactful” towards outsiders?
The burly figure disappeared from Jiang Li’s side, and a rough hand landed on Pavilion Lord Sun’s shoulder.
The defensive artifact on Pavilion Lord Sun automatically emitted a glow to resist the external attack.
However, when the palm pressed down, it was as if the claws of nine terrifying demon beasts pressed down at the same time. The terrifying force even made the protective light of a Nascent Soul cultivator tremble.
His fan movement naturally stopped as a result.
“The truth?”
“What Pavilion Master Sun means is that they attacked my disciple because of your order. You want to kill the outstanding disciples of other sects so that the Immortal Ascension Pavilion can win!”
“Pavilion Master Sun, you mean to start an all-out war with my Scripture Storage Valley? Very good, my sect will grant you your wish!”
Boom!
As soon as he finished speaking, he exerted more strength. The soil beneath the other party’s feet instantly cracked, and a large amount of soil collapsed, forming a huge bowl-shaped depression on the spot.
Pavilion Master Sun’s knees buckled. Fortunately, he did not kneel down immediately. It took him a lot of effort to stand up. If he knelt down now, the reputation of the entire Great Mountain Branch of the Immortal Ascension Pavilion would be completely lost.
While this unreasonable and overbearing statement made Pavilion Master Sun feel offended, he also recalled Elder He’s reputation back then… no, it should be his reputation for being reckless.
There was no point in reasoning with Elder He. That pair of fists specialized in subduing all kinds of dissent.
Especially when… they were the ones in the wrong.