Chapter 550: Crossing Swords

Then, Zhu Jingyi turned to Jiuchen and his two companions and said coldly, "Do you all feel the same? My strength may be lacking, but as the City Lord of Santafe City, I have a duty to protect its people. What’s more, the dignity of the Bright Moon Empire will not be trampled upon by you here."

Zhu Jingyi’s righteous declaration immediately earned him the praise and cheers of the countless citizens below.

"What a racket."

Jiuchen, who had been ignoring Zhu Jingyi, suddenly shot him a cold glance. Without wasting a single word, he struck out with his palm. WHOOSH! A hazy, black palm shadow instantly shot toward Zhu Jingyi’s chest.

Zhu Jingyi was stunned. He never imagined Jiuchen would be so brazen as to attack without a word of warning.

In his haste, he quickly crossed his arms in front of his chest. With a dull THUD, an immense force struck him. Like a kite with a severed string, Zhu Jingyi was sent hurtling into a building below.

BOOM! The impact instantly created a massive crater in the building, which collapsed in a cloud of dust and debris.

"Move."

After sending Zhu Jingyi flying, Jiuchen gave a cold, low command and was the first to charge toward the estate below.

’The arrow has already been loosed from the bow.’ Jiuchen knew that at this point, nothing else mattered. The only thing of importance was to capture Duan Tianlang and the others from the Profound Mystery Sect.

"If you won’t come out, then I’ll flush you out."

BOOM!

A colossal black palm shadow materialized in the sky. The hazy image transformed into a great mountain, smashing down violently into the estate below.

The entire estate shattered in an instant, reduced to a field of rubble. Amidst the billowing dust, five powerful figures shot out from the debris.

WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH...

The moment these five figures appeared, the air was filled with a haze of Profound Yuan. The powerful auras of Jiuchen’s group and Duan Tianlang’s five-man team clashed wildly in the sky, creating a massive whirlwind of Profound Yuan.

"So you’ve finally decided to show yourselves? I was starting to think you’d just hide in your shells forever."

Jiuchen hovered high in the air, his voice cold.

"Hmph." Duan Tianlang snorted and shot a cold glance at Jiuchen’s group in the sky, a bone-chilling killing intent radiating from him.

"Your Gale Light Academy really overestimates me, sending so many people. However, it seems seven of you are just students, not even Tier Seven Martial Kings. Surely you don’t think a few kids like you can stop us?"

A cold sneer played on Duan Tianlang’s lips, his expression filled with mockery and disdain.

"We’ll find out if we can stop you after we fight," Jiuchen sneered back. "Your Profound Mystery Sect injured our Gale Light Academy disciples and ran rampant on our grounds. Today, you will pay for that debt in blood."

As his voice faded, Jiuchen shot directly toward Duan Tianlang.

"Go!"

He gently raised his hand, and a hazy palm shadow materialized before him. Brilliant light flowed across it as streams of black, misty energy rose up. The palm lines were so clear that it seemed to transform into a true hand of flesh and blood, exuding incomparable might.

"Hmph. Spirit of the Fading Dream—break!"

CLANG!

The purple longsword on Duan Tianlang’s back shot out of its sheath. He slashed, and a flurry of cherry blossoms swirled out, striking the black palm. Amid a deafening roar, a terrifying force erupted from the point of impact and swept outward.

An invisible force washed over the area below. Many of the Santafe City Martial Artists present were crushed by the pressure, their bodies wracked with excruciating pain as blood streamed from their eyes, ears, noses, and mouths.

"Oh no."

"Fall back!"

"Get back, now!"

Cries of terror rang out as countless Martial Artists scrambled back, their eyes wide with horror.

The clash between Duan Tianlang and Jiuchen was horrifying. The mere shockwaves were more than many of the Tier Six Martial Venerables present could withstand. They couldn’t begin to imagine the terrifying power concentrated at the heart of the battle.

A Tier Six Martial Venerable would likely be annihilated in an instant.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Violent booms echoed without end. In the midst of the clash, the cherry blossoms swirling from Duan Tianlang’s purple longsword were crushed by the black palm print, shattering one after another.

’Hm? What’s this?’

Duan Tianlang was stunned. ’The strength of this cloaked man is beyond my imagination. He’s even stronger than Vice Director Ge, not weaker in the slightest.’

BOOM!

Duan Tianlang was forced back again and again by the crushing palm print.

’Damn it.’

Duan Tianlang’s gaze hardened. ’This can’t go on.’ With a thought, a large, earth-yellow seal instantly appeared before him.

BANG!

The earth-yellow seal collided with the black palm print, scattering a hazy Qi of Chaos. With a slight tremor, the seal shattered Jiuchen’s attack.

Then, carrying unparalleled might, the earth-yellow seal pressed down toward Jiuchen.

The seal swelled in the air, spinning and expanding until, in the blink of an eye, it was hundreds of feet wide, like a small mountain hovering in the sky.

Brilliant light flowed across its surface, and various talismans flashed into existence. It was as if a True Dragon were taking flight, releasing a vast and majestic imperial aura.

As wisps of the Qi of Chaos drifted down, the countless Martial Artists below felt an immense pressure on their minds, forcing them involuntarily to their knees.

’So this is Duan Tianlang’s Eighth-Level Imperial Soldier? It really is terrifying. Tier Eight Martial Emperor... what will it take for me to reach that realm?’

Jiuchen’s gaze hardened. He had long known that Duan Tianlang possessed an Imperial Soldier and had come prepared. As he considered this, a black dagger appeared in his hand. A cold light flashed from its blade, and faint cracks began to form in the space around it.

Seeing the black dagger, Duan Tianlang’s heart sank. ’This cloaked man has an Eighth-Level Imperial Soldier, too? He clearly came prepared. This is going to be dangerous.’

He glanced over and saw that not far away, Zhou Zhanlun and the other three Supreme Elders were locked in a cold standoff with Elder Yao’s group.

’If I want any chance of survival, I have to break through this cloaked man.’

Duan Tianlang’s resolve hardened into ruthless determination. He knew that his fight with the cloaked man was the key to the entire battle. If he won, his people might have a chance to escape. If he lost, their fate was all but sealed.

"Kill!"

At this thought, Duan Tianlang’s gaze turned vicious, and he charged savagely at Jiuchen.

Meanwhile, in another part of the battlefield, Elder Yao and the others also sprang into action.

Elder Yao faced off against Zhou Zhanlun, the very same opponent he had fought before.

"We never finished our fight last time. This time, let’s see who’s truly stronger."

Zhou Zhanlun stood atop his mutated Demon Beast, Kuidi, his entire being radiating a sharp, imposing aura.

"See who’s stronger? Are you even worthy of finding out?"

Elder Yao sneered and, without another word, launched a decisive attack.

At the same time, Elder Dong targeted Evil Kill.

Evil Kill’s aura was sinister and suited for assassination; he was the most unpredictable of the four Supreme Elders. Elder Dong targeted him specifically to prevent him from launching any surprise attacks on the students.

"Hah!"

He held nothing back. A sky full of Jingang Profound Treasures rapidly formed an inescapable net that descended upon Evil Kill.

"Heh heh heh, Dong Boson. You actually chose to target me. Should I feel honored?"

Evil Kill cackled, but his eyes were grave. Elder Dong was a Tier Seven Second Layer Martial King, but as a Soul Refiner, his true combat strength was comparable to some Tier Seven Third Layer Martial Kings. This made Evil Kill extremely wary.

"Heh, looks like the seven of us are left with just these two. How boring,"

Seeing Elder Dong’s group swiftly engage their targets, Tianlun and the other students looked at the remaining Crazy Battle and Leng Wuji, feeling somewhat exasperated.

Seven of them against two Martial Kings. Given their pride, they wouldn’t have even bothered to act if this weren’t an official mission.

"Alright, how about this? The seven of us can split into two groups..."

Tianlun began to strategize, looking at Ye Xuan and Gu Qingxuan.

"No need. Leave Crazy Battle to me."

Ye Xuan stepped forward and declared coldly.

’Crazy Battle has hunted me for so long. What’s the point if I don’t kill him with my own two hands?’

’Well, there goes one of them.’

Tianlun and the others were left speechless.

However, they all knew about the grudge between Ye Xuan and Crazy Battle, so of course, none of them would try to fight him for this opponent.

"So... the six of us are supposed to fight this one guy?"

Murong Yunyu and the others pouted, their faces showing a clear lack of enthusiasm.

Seeing Ye Xuan’s group dividing them up like goods at a market, both Leng Wuji and Crazy Battle’s expressions turned to rage.

"Hey, you little brats, don’t you think you’re underestimating us?"

Leng Wuji’s voice was frigid. He brandished his battle saber, and a bone-chilling aura radiated from him, causing snowflakes to drift down from the sky.

"Oh? The Profound Truth of Ice. Interesting."

The eyes of Tianlun and his friends lit up.

"Let me be the first to test this Supreme Elder from the Profound Mystery Sect."

"No way! This is Leng Wuji, also known as the Cold Ice Saber! He’s a big deal, way more famous than that Martial King from the Profound Mystery Sect, Lu Nan, we killed last time. I barely got a piece of the action with Lu Nan. You have to let me have this one!"

"You think you’re good enough?"

"If I’m not, what makes you think you are?"

Tianlun and the others began to argue.

"Damn you."

Leng Wuji’s already snow-white face grew even paler with rage. "Stop arguing!" he roared. "You’re all going to die!"

WHOOSH!

As his voice fell, he slashed his saber. A dense wave of Ice Profound Yuan formed a frigid storm in the air, manifesting as a hailstorm whirlwind that swept toward Tianlun and his friends.

"Haha, he’s attacking me! I’ll go first!"

The frigid storm reached Liu Wentao first. Overjoyed, he swung his own saber to meet it.

CRACK!

A terrifying icy power surged through the collision and instantly flooded Liu Wentao’s body. A thin layer of frost spread over his skin at a visible rate as he was sent flying backward.

CRACK!

The ice shattered as he flew through the air. Liu Wentao’s face was pale and his lips were purple. The hand gripping his saber was trembling faintly.