BANG!
The moment the hammer and palm collided, the old eunuch’s arms shattered like rotten wood. His eerie blue Ghost Fire was instantly dispersed by the incredibly tyrannical Ten Extremes True Qi.
The hammer’s momentum didn’t falter, smashing down hard on his skull. A dull thud of a collapsing cranium was accompanied by a spray of blood mist. The old eunuch’s stooped body flew backward like a broken sack, dragging a shocking trail of blood across the green bricks of the Martial Arts Arena.
Xu Yunfan stood tall, retracting his hammer. He glanced coldly at the mangled heap of flesh and blood.
The old eunuch wasn’t dead yet. A rasping "GURGLE" sounded from his throat, and his shattered chest still heaved faintly.
At this moment, the tenacious Life Force of a Nine Realm Qi Cultivator had become a form of torture.
"You eunuchs are really..."
Xu Yunfan stepped forward and raised his hammer again. "...quite the eye-opener!"
This strike, carrying the force of a mountain collapse and a tsunami, came crashing down! The surging Ten Extremes True Qi, augmented by the Earth Vein Power, erupted from the hammer’s head in a visible shockwave.
Under the crushing pressure of the terrifying True Qi, the old eunuch’s ruined body completely exploded. Splinters of bone and bits of flesh flew everywhere, tearing up the green bricks and the ground within a thirty-foot radius.
After the dust settled, only a ten-foot-deep crater remained. Stuck to the bottom were a few blood-soaked scraps of the eunuch’s robes.
"Xu Yunfan, you dare commit treason?!"
The sharp cry rang out like clashing cold iron. Guo Lang, Supervisor of the Astronomical Bureau, stepped forward from the edge of the viewing platform, his official robes billowing and his face contorted with rage.
"Treason?"
Xu Yunfan let out a sudden, loud laugh. He slid the Shaking Mountain Sea-Suppressing Hammer back into the mechanism on his belt and drew the Red Fire Dragon-Swallowing Mace, pointing it at Guo Lang.
"If this ’country’ is one that sacrifices thirty million people across the Six Paths and Seventy-Nine States—using their resentful souls as fuel and their bones as a cauldron—all just to extend that Empress’s life by thirty years..."
He pointed the mace toward the Imperial City, the force of his voice shattering the surrounding bronze water clocks. "Then what does it matter if I betray this country!"
Xu Yunfan glared at Guo Lang.
"Guo Lang of the Astronomical Bureau..."
Xu Yunfan aimed the tip of his mace directly at the man’s brow, his Ten Extremes True Qi resonating in his throat like a dragon’s roar. "Three years ago, you personally built the Observatory, sacrificing thirty million people from the Seventy-Nine States just to extend that Empress’s life!"
He took another step forward, the Ten Extremes True Qi surging around him like a Furious Tide. "While the people wept blood, you were at the top of the platform, laughing and drinking divine nectar! Where the souls of the wronged wailed, you used your Compass to measure the ebb and flow of Destiny..."
The heavy mace tore through the air with a piercing shriek. "A butcher-sorcerer like you is fit to speak of loyalty and righteousness in broad daylight?!"
"Kill!"
Xu Yunfan’s Ten Extremes True Qi surged like a raging river. Profound Yellow Qi coiled around his Red Fire Dragon-Swallowing Mace, and every strike carried the force of a collapsing mountain and a sweeping tsunami.
’He felt an incredible sense of release. So this was why the heroes of old always raised the banner of "delivering justice on behalf of heaven" before heading into battle. It wasn’t hypocrisy; only by shouldering a great and righteous cause could the act of slaughter feel so exhilarating!’
’Look at that. Even swinging the mace felt more powerful, and his spirits were higher than before.’
The mace’s tip split the air, sounding like a dragon’s cry to the nine heavens.
The green bricks of the Black Tortoise Martial Arts Arena beneath his feet cracked and shattered. The more Xu Yunfan thought about it, the more fired up he became. He let out a long cry, "The Taoist Sect fights today for the martial destiny of the world! You who sacrifice the nation’s blood and brutalize the common people..."
The shadow of his mace swept out, pulverizing the blades and spears that came at him.
"...deserve to face this mace!"
Before the Ten Extremes True Qi enveloping the mace could dissipate, a streak of cyan light suddenly shot across the Martial Arts Arena.
"Infinite Celestial Venerable!"
Daoist Guanshan of the Profound Daoist Sect appeared, treading in an Eight Trigrams Step. The silver threads of his duster exploded outward like a waterfall, wrapping around the Red Fire Dragon-Swallowing Mace at the last possible moment.
The seemingly delicate end of the duster touched the body of the mace, erupting with the sound of clashing metal. Xu Yunfan felt the force behind his mace vanish as if a clay ox entering the sea. An incomparably clever technique was neutralizing his Ten Extremes True Qi layer by layer!
’What immense power!’
Daoist Guanshan was shaken. His True Qi flared, and his Daoist robes billowed. He couldn’t stop himself from taking three steps back, only managing to halt his retreat after his Dragon and Tiger True Qi manifested as a dragon and a tiger coiling around him.
His expression remained unchanged as he formed a Meridian Technique seal with his left hand. His voice was like a great bell. "Little Brother Xu, your killing intent is too strong!"
Although Daoist Guanshan had used his Dragon and Tiger Pill Qi to deflect seventy percent of the force, he was still jolted back three steps, the green bricks beneath his feet exploding one after another.
’The webbing between the thumb and forefinger of his left hand, hidden in his sleeve, had already split open. The phantom images of the dragon and tiger formed by his Dragon and Tiger True Qi had even wavered for an instant from the rebound force. What kind of power was this? This wasn’t something a typical Ninth Realm cultivator should possess!’
’When I first met this boy on Cyan Mountain Profound Daoist Mountain, he was just a kid who had barely grasped the rudiments of the Outer Three Harmonies...’
Daoist Guanshan’s mind reeled as he recalled Xu Yunfan’s greenness during his duel with Su Zhenhe that day.
’But the Ten Extremes True Qi contained in that mace now was already comparable to that of an old monster from the Daoist Sect who had cultivated bitterly for a century!’
"Elder Guanshan?!"
Xu Yunfan was surprised, but his voice immediately grew deep.
Daoist Guanshan flicked his duster, and its silver threads contracted like a living creature, transforming into a spearhead that gleamed with the luster of gold and jade.
His eyes were slightly downcast, his voice as placid as an old well. "Xu the Younger, the Profound Daoist Sect has received a royal decree to guard the Jade Capital Earth Vein."
Xu Yunfan raised an eyebrow. He rubbed the patterns on his Nine Profound Dragon Whip as he slowly channeled his dormant Ten Extremes True Qi into it, causing the nine Profound Patterns on the heavy weapon to light up one by one.
"The Profound Daoist Sect is one of the Six Great Sects of Da Zhou. It controls the ten states of Lingnan Dao, and its ’Dragon and Tiger Pill Force’ Cultivation Technique is said to lead directly to the Land Immortal Realm. Why would you lower yourselves to beg from the Great Zhou Royal Family and willingly become their lapdogs?"
"Lower ourselves? Willingly become lapdogs?"
Daoist Guanshan’s wide sleeves swayed gently, and the Divine Weapon Xuanzhen Sword hanging at his waist glinted with a cold light.
His gaze was lowered as if contemplating a mountain, yet the air around him suddenly froze. "Xu Zhenchuan, are you aware that the Great Zhou Royal Family controls the resources of the entire Great Zhou empire? Of the world’s Six Paths, the Sects get three-tenths of the resources, while Great Zhou alone takes seven-tenths. The Empress of Great Zhou wields the Dragon-Suppressing Seal and can command thirty-six Dragon Vein nodes."
"Last year alone, just to obtain the mining rights for the Profound Iron Ore Vein in the Red Flame Rift Valley, the Profound Daoist Sect paid three thousand catties of Star Pattern Steel to the royal Inner Treasury. And that’s not to mention..."
He suddenly looked up, his pupils reflecting the faint fluctuations of True Qi behind Xu Yunfan. "The ’Dragon Nailing Technique’ that your Taoist Sect is currently performing on Qingwei Mountain requires obsidian that comes exclusively from the Ghostly Wail Abyss, which is under the Royal Family’s control."
The sound of a bronze gong from the Imperial City Department echoed in the distance. Daoist Guanshan tilted his head to listen for a moment.
"Xu Zhenchuan, why do you think Hong Baichuan of the Celestial Craft Cave is willing to forge weapons for the Empress? Why would the three suffering monks of Mituo Temple appear on the Taoist Sect’s Qingwei Mountain?"
He suddenly broke into a smile. "Which of the world’s Sects isn’t just drinking poison to quench their thirst?"
Xu Yunfan’s heart stirred. He instantly understood. In this matter, the Taoist Sect had acted alone, placing itself in opposition to all the other major Sects.
’That’s right. The Taoist Sect wants to sever the Great Zhou Dragon Vein to help me break through my shackles and reach the Land Immortal Realm.’
’If I succeed and the Taoist Sect succeeds, then the balance of power among the Six Paths will be broken. The Taoist Sect would blot out the sky with one hand, becoming one superpower ruling over many strong factions.’
’No wonder... No wonder even the Profound Daoist Sect couldn’t sit still...’
Xu Yunfan’s Ten Extremes True Qi roared like thunder within him. His mace’s tip pulsed, its Gang Qi flaring with a sharp edge.
After a moment of silence, he looked up, a cold glint in his eyes.
"Of the Six Great Sects, Mituo Temple are the Empress’s running dogs, the Profound Daoist Sect received a Cultivation Technique, and the Jiuyao Sect has always been indecisive..."