BOOM!
Xu Yunfan was sent flying a thousand feet by the punch, smashing through seven palace walls in succession.
The ferocious power was quickly dispersed by his Dragon Scale Armor, leaving him completely unharmed. He was, however, secretly alarmed. ’This brute’s physical strength is comparable to a Tier Seven Divine Weapon!’
Moreover, this was the first time he had ever met someone whose raw strength could compare to his own.
Xu Yunfan glanced down and saw that the dragon engravings on his Red Fire Dragon-Swallowing Mace had been ground down three inches by the Fist Gang.
Seizing the advantage, Chu Sheng gave no quarter. He executed the Nine Luminaries Step, transforming into a falling meteor of fire as he gave chase.
Each step left a burning golden footprint in the air. After nine overlapping steps, his speed broke the sound barrier, forming a conical vapor cloud before his fist.
Xu Yunfan’s expression was calm as he circulated his Ten Extremes True Qi. It surged through his flesh and skin like a great river, and the sheen of his Jade Marrow Golden Bone appeared on his body’s surface.
"Ten Extremes, Returning Ruins!"
The Red Fire Dragon-Swallowing Mace suddenly split into ten phantoms, each corresponding to one of the Ten Extremes True Qi’s attributes.
Chu Sheng’s fist energy was dissipated layer by layer, until finally, the mace phantoms merged back into one and stabbed toward his throat.
Chu Sheng neither dodged nor evaded, taking the mace head-on with his neck. Amid a shower of sparks, it left only a white mark.
He seized the opportunity to grab the mace’s shaft, and with a ferocious roar, he swung Xu Yunfan, mace and all, and smashed him violently into the ground.
BANG!
Amidst an earth-shaking crash, Xu Yunfan was driven thirty feet into the ground.
Just as Chu Sheng was about to follow up with a "Great Sun Meteor Pendant," he felt an unbearable searing pain in his palm. The Red Fire Dragon-Swallowing Mace had, at some point, turned as red-hot as a branding iron. On the handle, nine Inverted Scales had raised up, piercing into the flesh of his hand.
"Eight Desolates Dragon Fall."
Xu Yunfan’s voice drifted up from the bottom of the pit.
Chu Sheng was shocked to find his qi and blood being drained away at a frantic pace. He hurriedly activated his Great Sun Glaze Body to suppress it.
Taking advantage of that momentary opening, Xu Yunfan burst from the earth. His Mace Technique abruptly changed, transforming into a sky full of red rainbows that enveloped Chu Sheng.
The two fought fiercely for over three hundred moves. The explosions from the clash between the Nine Luminaries True Qi and the Ten Extremes True Qi flattened an entire city block.
Just as Xu Yunfan and Chu Sheng’s grueling battle reached its peak, a bone-chilling flash of sword light suddenly tore across the battlefield!
Daoist Guanshan, who had been lying in wait for some time, seized the momentary opening as Xu Yunfan withdrew his mace and launched a decisive attack!
The longsword at his waist left its sheath. Before the blade even arrived, its Sword Intent manifested as intertwining dragons and tigers, their roars shaking the heavens!
"Dragon and Tiger Demon Suppressing Sword!"
The sword light split. The Sword Qi on the left was like a Cyan Dragon extending its claws, while the Sword Qi on the right resembled a White Tiger pouncing for the kill. The two completely different Sword Intents merged perfectly, transforming into a brilliant bolt of energy that slashed straight for Xu Yunfan’s back!
This was the Profound Daoist Sect’s Ultimate Skill. It had to be powered by the Dragon and Tiger Pill Qi. When the sword was drawn, it was accompanied by a dragon and tiger, capable of slaying Evil Fiends and shattering Gang Qi!
Even a Ninth Realm Grandmaster, if caught unprepared, would be severely wounded by this single strike!
However... CLANG! Without even turning his head, Xu Yunfan swung his Red Fire Dragon-Swallowing Mace backhanded. The dragon engravings on its shaft flared to life, and at the last possible second, he executed a perfect block!
Sparks flew as the Sword Qi dissipated!
Daoist Guanshan’s pupils shrank. He was horrified. ’He can actually fight on two fronts at once?!’
Xu Yunfan kicked Chu Sheng away, then glanced sideways at Daoist Guanshan and grinned, the fighting spirit in his eyes burning even brighter. "The Profound Daoist Sect’s Dragon and Tiger Sword? Is that all you’ve got?"
Before his voice had even faded, he abruptly put his strength into it. With a jolt of his mace, he forcibly knocked Daoist Guanshan’s longsword aside!
At the same time, his Ten Extremes True Qi rushed to the soles of his feet, transforming into Yin Power. His figure shifted thirty feet sideways like a phantom, perfectly dodging Chu Sheng’s incoming Great Sun Red Fire Fist!
Seeing this, Chu Sheng roared in fury. Golden flames erupted from his body, and the Nine Suns Totem flowed across his skin, increasing the power of his fists by another thirty percent!
"Xu Yunfan! Let’s see how long you can keep dodging!"
His fists fell like crashing meteors, each blow carrying a scorching True Qi hot enough to melt gold and iron. The air itself seemed to twist and crackle from the heat!
Xu Yunfan neither dodged nor evaded. The Ten Extremes True Qi raged like a furious tide within him, and the sheen of his Jade Marrow Golden Bone grew even more brilliant.
He gripped the mace with both hands and abruptly changed his Mace Technique, simultaneously facing down two great experts!
"Ten Extremes! Eight Desolates Dragon Fall! Heaven and Earth Net!"
The Red Fire Dragon-Swallowing Mace split into a hundred phantoms, each one imbued with a different attribute of the Ten Extremes True Qi—some as hard and fierce as a mountain, some as supple as water, some as scorching as fire, some as frigid as ice...
The mace phantoms wove together into a net, completely intercepting both Chu Sheng’s Fist Gang and Daoist Guanshan’s Sword Qi!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
For the instant the three forces collided, the world fell silent. Then...
BOOOOM!!!
A deafening roar, like the crack of the Nine Heavens Divine Thunder, erupted, shaking the roof tiles off every building within a thousand-foot radius and sending them flying!
Under the violent impact, the ground fractured inch by inch. A spiderweb of cracks spread madly outward as bluestone tiles were thrown into the air, only to be pulverized into dust by the shockwave.
The century-old scholar trees lining the central avenue of the Imperial City were ripped out by the roots. Their trunks twisted and exploded in the Gang Wind, showering the area with splinters like a torrential downpour!
The spectating Martial Artists who had already fled to a great distance were terrified out of their wits. Those with weaker Cultivation had blood seeping from their ears and noses as they staggered and fell.
"Fall back! Fall back now!"
Someone shrieked, their voice distorted with terror.
The crowd scattered like a receding tide. Those with good Lightweight Skill fled across the rooftops, while the slower ones were knocked over by the shockwave, tumbling head over heels into the street-side shops.
The gilded sign of the Drunken Immortal Tower came crashing down, crushing an Iron River Gang disciple and leaving them with broken bones and torn ligaments.
Farther away, several Inner Sect Disciples from the Profound Daoist Sect failed to dodge in time and were struck in the back by flying debris, their robes instantly stained with blood.
Three thousand feet away, in a waterside pavilion, the brocade-robed youth who had been watching the battle turned deathly pale. The teacup in his hand shattered with a CRACK.
The purple-robed elder beside him swept his sleeve, condensing a three-foot-wide wall of qi. Even so, the aftershock forced him back three steps, and the floorboard beneath his feet snapped in two with a KRAK.
"A clash between Ninth Realm experts... is this terrifying..."
The elder’s beard trembled. He suddenly grabbed the youth by the collar and retreated rapidly. "Young Master, we must go! Get out of the city! Jade Capital City is about to collapse!"
Through the swirling dust, one could vaguely make out the spot where Xu Yunfan’s Red Fire Dragon-Swallowing Mace was locked in a stalemate with two enemy figures. The ground there had already collapsed into a massive pit, thirty feet deep.
At the bottom of the pit, magma-like red-gold True Qi, frost-white Sword Qi, and dark purple Evil Qi tangled and tore at each other, grinding everything they touched into dust!
The longer Daoist Guanshan fought, the more frightened he became. He had assumed that since Xu Yunfan had only just broken through to the Ninth Realm, his foundation would be insufficient. Yet now, his opponent was fighting two against one and even seemed to have the upper hand!
’This kid... is a true monster!’
Chu Sheng was equally shocked. He prided himself on his invincible physical body, yet Xu Yunfan’s physique was no weaker than his. Moreover, the profundity of the Ten Extremes True Qi far surpassed his Jiuyao Sect’s Great Sun Glaze Body!
By the three-hundredth move, Xu Yunfan’s attacks had grown even fiercer. His Mace Technique was like flowing water, completely without pause or hesitation.
"Ten Extremes, Returning Essence!"
He suddenly changed his move. The mace phantoms merged into one as the Red Fire Dragon-Swallowing Mace became a streak of red light, stabbing straight for Chu Sheng’s chest!
Chu Sheng hastily crossed his arms to block, but the blow sent him staggering back a hundred feet. The golden flames on his arms dimmed, and the impact sent his qi and blood into turmoil!
Seeing his chance, Daoist Guanshan hurriedly swung his sword to the rescue, but Xu Yunfan had already anticipated it. With a flash, he used the ultimate speed of his Ten Extremes Martial Arts to circle behind him!
"Elder Guanshan, your sword... is too slow!"