Chapter 1988 - Interception

Liang Chengzhou's argument eased the fear in Yan Jingfu and Wen Gongda.

"The men we sent yesterday still haven't reported back. They're likely dead. Is someone protecting that brat from the shadows?" Yan Jingfu asked, his brow deeply furrowed. Six peak Divine Immortals should have had more than enough strength to kill Liu Wuxie.

"Word just came in that he's going to the Cloud Mist Manor. Shall we intercept and take care of him before he wrecks our plans?" Wen Gongda asked, his expression tightening in viciousness. Liu Wuxie had become an obstruction they could no longer tolerate.

The Heavenly Alliance's promise to elevate their clans to the second tier came with a price. Before receiving its support, they had to deliver results.

"Send several Golden Immortals to test him. Make certain he gets no warning," Liang Chengzhou said after considering it.

......

Liu Wuxie reached the teleportation array without trouble. Not long afterward, three young men arrived wearing the golden robes of Azure Jade Palace inner disciples. They scanned the passengers before their gaze settled on Liu Wuxie.

That attention made Liu Wuxie frown. He remembered them approaching the branch when he was leaving. What had brought them to the city's teleportation array instead?

The array awakened in a blaze of light. The passengers felt weightless, and Mulberry Sea City vanished behind them.

About an hour later, they stepped out into a small town. Using his movement technique, Liu Wuxie sped toward the Cloud Mist Manor.

The three inner disciples rushed after him as he vanished from sight. "Don't let him get away!"

The Divine Ninefold Steps carried Liu Wuxie out of town and into a sprawling mountain range. Clouds and mist perpetually veiled the Cloud Mist Manor, giving the place its name.

He had scarcely entered the mountains when dense mist swallowed his surroundings. He could see only roughly a hundred meters ahead.

Slowing down, he watched for danger beyond that narrow field of vision.

Sharp whistles suddenly sounded overhead. Three figures dropped from the sky, cutting off his path.

"Not another step, Liu Wuxie!" they roared as they landed. Their Golden Immortal auras rolled toward him in a powerful wave, driving the mist aside.

Liu Wuxie's suspicions were confirmed. The guards had disclosed his identity. Their appearance at the teleportation array had already made him suspicious. Fifty immortal roots could inflame anyone's greed to madness.

"What do you want?" he asked coldly.

He knew none of them, and no grudge existed between them. Why else would they bar his way?

"Spare us the talk. Remove forty of your immortal roots. Do it yourself, or we'll take them," they demanded. They meant to settle this before anyone happened upon the scene.

"So I was right," Liu Wuxie said, a cruel smile touching his lips. His gaze cut across the three men, murderous intent flickering within it.

All three were Third-level Golden Immortals. He did not consider them a threat.

"You three worthless fools think you can take my immortal roots? That's rich!" Liu Wuxie laughed, calling the Bloodthirst Blade into his hand. Murderous intent spread in ripples, stirring the fallen leaves.

The men's expressions changed. Another Profound Immortal would have collapsed under their combined pressure. Liu Wuxie showed no fear at all. That composure alone was enough to put them on guard.

"You've chosen death. Don't blame us for giving it to you," they said, striking together before anything else could interfere.

The fight broke out at once. Liu Wuxie left Blackie where it was, choosing first to measure his own strength against the three.

"Wind Blade!" Liu Wuxie unleashed the fifth form of the Heavenly Crest Divine Blade Art. The attack rushed at them with the violence of a gale, leaving all three stunned. A Profound Immortal should not have been able to shrug off their Golden Immortal suppression so easily.

The fragment of the Asura Blade fused into the Bloodthirst Blade lent it a crushing power of its own. Beneath that influence, the inner disciples felt their soul seas strain as though on the verge of bursting.

"How is he doing this? Why can his blade technique suppress us?" Panic gripped the three, and their attacks lost much of their speed.

Yet they remained Golden Immortals. They responded quickly, unleashing their defenses beneath the descending strike.

Weapons collided in showers of sparks. Dry leaves caught fire below them, and flames raced across the forest floor.

"Marsh Blade!" Liu Wuxie roared, changing forms. His blade moved with the continuity of an endless stream, drawing a curtain of energy across their attacks. Water washed over the ground, smothering the spreading fire.

"You may know how to fight, Liu Wuxie, but your pitiful cultivation is still nothing before a Golden Immortal!" the three declared. They had adjusted to the blade's oppressive influence and launched their counterattack without delay.

Their abilities justified their rank as inner disciples of the Azure Jade Palace. Rogue cultivators could not compare with their combat strength. Even the pressure of their cultivation presented a serious danger to Liu Wuxie.

At present, he could kill peak Divine Immortals. Slaying Golden Immortals would require him to attain the Origin Immortal Realm.

"Wolf Monarch Sword!" one disciple cried.

"Rippling Raging Slash!" another shouted.

"Seven Cloud-Linking Swords!" The three unleashed their strongest techniques, holding nothing back. Water scattered before their assault. Like venomous vipers, their swords darted toward Liu Wuxie's vital points, too fast for him to counter.

With no other alternative, Liu Wuxie summoned Blackie.

Inside the Desolate World, Blackie had followed the fight with mounting impatience. Helping was the only way to earn more crystals, and two days without action had nearly driven it mad.

A black hole opened, and Blackie emerged, immediately sweeping its staff at the trio and taking them completely by surprise.

"What is that monster?" the three cried, recoiling in horror. Blackie's descending staff bore force comparable to an attack from a high-level Golden Immortal.

The staff crashed into the earth with a deafening impact, tearing out a massive crater. The resulting shockwave flung all three men backward.

They had no time to recover before flames burst from the staff and scattered through the air. Some fell upon the disciples.

"Aaargh!" Cries of agony erupted from them. However frantically they tried, they could not put out the fire. Desperation drove them to tear away their burning clothes, but the smell of scorched flesh remained, and blackened patches covered their skin.

"You filthy bastard, Liu Wuxie! You used a monster to ambush us!" they roared. Disregarding their wounds, they hurled a barrage of attacks at Blackie.

Blackie raised seven fingers toward Liu Wuxie. Its price had gone up from five.

"You have a deal," Liu Wuxie replied.

As his cultivation advanced, Liu Wuxie could absorb immortal energy and condense crystals more quickly. He could now satisfy Blackie's appetite while still keeping some for himself.

His agreement brought a grin to Blackie's face. The sight made the three disciples shudder, filling them with a dread they could not explain.

"Stay on the move! Wear it out! It has no demonic energy. All it can use is physical strength. Once that runs dry, we kill it!" the eldest called.

"Right!" The three adopted his plan immediately and pressed the attack again.

With little more required of him, Liu Wuxie moved back to observe from a safe distance.

"Even if refining all three doesn't bring me to the sixth-level Profound Immortal Realm, the gain in strength will be considerable," he murmured, a faint smile appearing.

The fighting grew fiercer. At every sweep of Blackie's staff, the men scattered, refusing to pit themselves directly against its strength.

"Finish it quickly, Blackie," Liu Wuxie urged. He was on a tight schedule already. He could not spare more time here.

Two thunderous roars answered him. Blood trickled from the disciples' ears as the sound brought their eardrums close to rupture. Blackie attacked while they remained dazed. Its black staff extended, and its height doubled. A terrifying giant now towered over the three men.

"Fall back!" Panic seized them at the sight of that immense form. Blackie's combat strength had risen to match high-level Golden Immortals.

Neither demonic nor immortal energy flowed from it. Instead, an invisible force emanated from its body and pressed heavily upon them.

Blackie swung its staff in a horizontal sweep. Trees shattered around it, leaving devastation in its wake.

Even Liu Wuxie felt astonishment stir within him. He had suspected Blackie could contend with high-level Golden Immortals. Seeing that power unleashed was still difficult to believe.

The men had only begun their retreat when the black staff reached them. They were not fast enough to outrun Blackie's attack.

Escape was impossible. "Then we fight to the death!" They braced themselves and charged. Close combat favored them, and their martial techniques and agile footwork carried them past several blows in succession.

Their approach did not trouble Blackie. Liu Wuxie watched with faint contempt.

Delight lit the disciples' faces as they closed to within five meters. Their swords descended again, carrying enough force to tear another Golden Immortal apart.

Blackie didn't attempt to evade the strikes.

Elated, the men imagined the creature falling in pieces beneath their blades. Fury had driven every last ounce of their strength into those attacks.

As they drew closer, Blackie thrust out both hands and caught them around the waist.