Zhao Yue's back looked disheveled, but a hint of ruthlessness was hidden in his eyes.
He had no intention of actually leaving—he carried the Dragon Elephant Sect's most prized treasure, the "Mountain Splitting Seal," a magic artifact at the early Nirvana stage. It was forged from the remains of a Nirvana beast that the sect's patriarch and others had killed, and its power was enough to shatter the defenses of a Creation Realm cultivator.
He had calculated that Hong Xiao would become arrogant after obtaining the Rejuvenation Pill, and he also predicted that the Tianwu Sect would not be able to produce a treasure that could rival the Mountain-Splitting Seal.
Today, he will cripple Hong Xiao in front of everyone at the entrance of the Sanyuan Chamber of Commerce, thus shattering the Tianwu Sect's hopes of reaching the Nirvana Realm!
Hong Xiao hovered in mid-air, his grip on the giant axe tightening slightly. He hadn't brought any top-tier magical artifacts; the Heavenly Martial Sect's most prized treasure had been taken by the patriarch to suppress the sect's fortune and couldn't be touched.
But he wasn't afraid—the Rejuvenation Pill in his hand was purchased by the Sanyuan Chamber of Commerce. The Sanyuan Chamber of Commerce had been able to establish itself in the Xuanqiong Realm for a thousand years because of its reputation. If the pills were fake, not only would Hong Xiao object, but all the cultivators in the Xuanqiong Realm would raze the Sanyuan Pavilion to the ground. This pill was his greatest source of confidence.
On the surface, the two left separately, but in reality, they were both gathering their strength, with eight hundred schemes silently clashing in mid-air.
"Now!"
Zhao Yue suddenly turned around, flicked his sleeve, and a stone seal that was pitch black and covered with ferocious patterns flew out. It grew as it faced the wind, instantly becoming more than ten feet in size. The seal face was carved with a roaring dragon and elephant, and its body was surrounded by a faint gray mist - that was the "boundary force" fluctuation that only Nirvana Realm could have!
"The Mountain-Splitting Seal! It's the Dragon Elephant Sect's most prized treasure!" someone in the plaza exclaimed in shock. "Has Zhao Yue gone mad? He actually brought out such a powerful artifact!"
Hong Xiao's pupils shrank sharply. He hadn't expected Zhao Yue to dare use the Mountain-Splitting Seal! Even if this Nirvana-level magic weapon was only in its rudimentary form, it was definitely not something he could withstand!
"Hong Xiao, prepare to die!"
With a sinister grin, Zhao Yue unleashed his spiritual power, and the Mountain-Splitting Seal, carrying the force to shatter the heavens and split the earth, slammed fiercely towards Hong Xiao. The air was compressed, emitting a hissing sound, and the ground of the plaza below instantly cracked open with spiderweb-like fissures.
At the critical moment, Hong Xiao suddenly gathered all his spiritual power in front of him, transforming it into a pale golden shield. He held his giant axe horizontally in front of the shield and roared, "Block it for me!"
"Bang—!"
The Mountain-Splitting Seal collided with the shield, producing a deafening roar. The golden shield shattered into pieces like paper, the giant axe was knocked out of his hand, and Hong Xiao himself was like a kite with a broken string, spitting out blood as he crashed straight to the ground!
"Boom!"
The ground was smashed into a crater several meters deep, filled with smoke and dust, and flying debris, obscuring the view inside.
"Ancestor Hong!" Tianwu Sect's followers exclaimed and rushed over, only to be blocked by Zhao Yue's spiritual energy barrier.
Zhao Yue hovered above the crater, looking down at the smoke and dust below, a smug grin spreading across his face: "Hong Xiao, without your magic weapon, let's see how you fight me! Today I'll show you that the Dragon Elephant Sect is the number one sect in the East!"
The cultivators in the square held their breath, many feeling that Hong Xiao was likely in grave danger—being struck head-on by a Nirvana-level magic weapon, even someone at the peak of the Creation Realm would have little chance of survival.
Inside the Sanyuan Pavilion, Wanqiu frowned slightly and subconsciously looked towards the direction of the second-floor lone cultivators' seats. Xiao Chen was still there. If Hong Xiao died, the reputation of the Rejuvenation Pill would probably be affected.
Just then, from the smoke and dust of the pit, a slow, creaking sound of bones grinding together could be heard.
A figure slowly climbed up from the pile of rubble.
It was Hong Xiao.
He was dressed in rags, with blood at the corner of his mouth, and his left arm was twisted unnaturally, clearly indicating a serious injury, but his eyes were unusually bright, even with a hint of excitement.
"Zhao Yue, do you think you can kill me with such simple tricks?" Hong Xiao chuckled, took out the small jade bottle from his pocket, uncorked it, gently poured out a pill, and then drank it all in one gulp.
Almost the instant the pill entered his throat, a surge of powerful spiritual energy erupted from his body!
The previously depleted dantian was as if it were being filled with a clear spring, and the spiritual energy lost in the meridians was restored at a speed visible to the naked eye. Even the injury to the left arm healed at an extremely fast speed, and the twisted bones made a soft "click" sound and returned to their original positions on their own!
"This...this is..." Zhao Yue's sinister smile froze, his eyes filled with disbelief. "How is this possible! Your spiritual power..."
In just three breaths, Hong Xiao's aura not only returned to its peak, but was even more robust than before! It was the feeling of fullness brought by the warm power of the pill after his spiritual energy was completely replenished!
"The Spirit Recovery Pill truly lives up to its reputation!" Hong Xiao stretched his left arm, feeling the surging spiritual energy within his body, and laughed loudly. "Zhao Yue, you've used up most of your spiritual energy to activate the Mountain Splitting Seal. Now, it's my turn!"
He didn't pick up the giant axe on the ground, but instead clenched his fists, and the pale golden spiritual power around him burned like flames—without the restraint of the magic weapon, he could unleash the power of body cultivation to the extreme!
"Impossible! I don't believe it!"
Zhao Yue frantically activated the Mountain-Splitting Seal, wanting to attack again, but found that he only had less than 30% of his spiritual power left—the consumption of the Nirvana-level magic weapon was too great, and the previous attack had almost drained his spiritual power reserves.
"Too late!"
Hong Xiao's figure appeared in front of Zhao Yue like a ghost, and his fist, as big as a casserole dish, brought a force that tore through the air and slammed hard into Zhao Yue's chest!
"Snap!"
The sound of bones cracking was clearly audible. Zhao Yue was struck as if by a boulder, spitting out blood as he flew backward, crashing into the protective barrier of the Sanyuan Pavilion. He slid to the ground, struggled a few times but could not get up, his breath extremely weak.
"I'll spare your life. Go back and tell the Dragon Elephant Sect's patriarch, the Heavenly Martial Sect, that they'll be waiting for him to come and fight!" Hong Xiao hovered in front of Zhao Yue, his eyes icy cold.
Looking at Hong Xiao's unwavering aura, and then at his own empty spiritual energy dantian, Zhao Yue's eyes were filled with fear and resentment. He knew he had lost, lost because of that insignificant pill.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com