With just a single glance, Shi Hezhang could see the youth’s condition.
However, rembering his mission, Shi Hezhang ignored the youth, continuing to channel the Divine Stone’s power and directing his gaze beyond the walls.
This ti, he saw the scene hidden behind the walls—the tree that seed to be the Chen Clan’s totem.
However, the Divine Tree's form was hazy in his vision, and its surroundings were shrouded in endless black mist, preventing him from seeing clearly.
As the Divine Stone in his hand shone brighter and brighter, Shi Hezhang’s vision sharpened, as though he were about to pierce the fog and glimpse the totem’s true essence.
Just then, another surge of blood and qi rose from below.
Interrupted, Shi Hezhang no longer looked further. A flicker of anger rose in his heart.
A re mid-stage Innate Realm cultivator dared to be so reckless, striking at him again and again, utterly ignorant of the heavens above and the earth below.
After all, his purpose was to consu the Chen Clan’s totem power. Since the totem had yet to act, he decided to crush their spirit first before the true battle began.
The next instant, Shi Hezhang no longer restrained himself. With a twist of his palm, an ordinary-looking wind blade shot forth, streaking downward at extre speed toward Chen Qingyu.
Sensing the danger above him, Chen Qingyu reacted with lightning speed. A phantom afterimage sprang from beneath his feet—he had used Shadow Step.
With this technique, Chen Qingyu narrowly evaded the wind blade. Yet, when the blade struck the ground, the clansn's expressions grew grim.
The mont the wind blade hit, the stone slabs covering the ground shattered effortlessly, and its residual force burrowed deep into the earth below.
Such power! Against an Innate Realm cultivator, even a re touch would wound, and a direct hit would surely kill.
Chen Qingyu remained calm, not sparing the attack a glance. With a sweep of the white bone in his hand, a Sword Qi, condensed from blood and qi, surged forth.
Above, Shi Hezhang sensed that this strike was unusual and chose not to et it head on.
As a cultivator of the Inner Gang Realm, he had the upper hand. Even in midair, evading such an attack would be effortless.
But just as he prepared to dodge, the Divine Stone in his hand suddenly erupted with dazzling light.
Shi Hezhang’s heart tightened and his gaze snapped forward.
A golden phantom abruptly appeared in his vision—not a human figure, but a single locust leaf, entirely golden.
Crack!
As the golden leaf shattered, the phantom of a colossal locust tree swiftly ford in the sky.
The tree towered high, its branches lush and sprawling. Strange, dual-colored patterns ran across its trunk, and a faint golden glow flickered upon each leaf.
Seeing this scene, Shi Hezhang's eyes grew solemn. He muttered under his breath,
"Incense projection... So it's really an incense totem!"
But the next mont, a faint sneer escaped his lips.
"At last, you’ve chosen to act. Very well—let see what true power your Chen Clan totem possesses!"
As he finished speaking, the phantom locust tree before him stirred. A massive branch swung toward Shi Hezhang with trendous force.
When it struck, the golden light on the phantom tree dimd, while the brilliance on that single branch grew ever more dazzling. All the qi from the incense had been gathered into this one blow, aiming to kill him in one strike!
From Chen Qingyu’s attack to the manifestation and strike of the incense projection, it all happened in an instant.
Now, with two attacks descending simultaneously, Shi Hezhang had nowhere to evade.
Though it appeared perilous, he remained calm, exuding composure and confidence.
As Shi Hezhang’s blood and qi poured into the Divine Stone, a massive, transparent stone phantom swiftly ford around him in midair.
Inside the stone phantom, Shi Hezhang's lips curved into a faint smile.
"Let the Chen Clan witness the power of the Shi Clan’s totem!"
When the three attacks collided, a silent reverberation echoed across the skies.
Below, the clansn's vision blurred. They could vaguely sense two forces clashing and eroding one another but could not see the true confrontation between the totem powers.
Not far away, Chen Qingyu narrowed his eyes, straining to see the outco. Yet, all he could see above was a blinding clash of gold and earthen hues.
When the light finally faded, the clansn hastily raised their heads, eager to know the result.
But when their eyes adjusted to the scene above, they were filled with disbelief.
Shi Hezhang still stood calmly in the air, and the massive stone phantom shielding him remained intact, showing no signs of shattering.
The projection of the clan’s totem that had just appeared had already vanished.
The clansn had no choice but to admit the truth that lay plainly before their eyes—they did not wish to believe it, but it was true.
It seed that this clash of totem powers had ended with the Chen Clan’s Divine Tree in defeat.
Many clansn silently clenched their fists, their faces filled with unwillingness.
Yet, they could not even touch the enemy’s robes, let alone strike back. They were not qualified to fight.
“Hahahahahaha!”
Within the stone phantom above, Shi Hezhang looked down at the bewildered and defiant expressions of the Chen clansn and laughed aloud.
"The Chen Clan must be destroyed!"
After leaving these words behind, Shi Hezhang did not linger—he withdrew decisively.
"Clan Leader!"
Below, Chen Tianjing and Chen Tianyu quietly stepped to Chen Xingzhen’s side and called out. Yet, helplessness was evident on their faces.
Though they had reached the Innate Realm in their cultivation, they were utterly powerless against such a formidable foe. This left both n with a heavy sense of frustration.
Chen Xingzhen remained calm. Instead of showing disappointnt at the recent setback, a faint smile appeared on his face.
"Gather the clansn in the ancestral hall. I have a few words to say.”
"Yes, Clan Leader!"
The two n received the order and turned to depart.
Chen Xingzhen also walked slowly toward the ancestral hall. Although they had just been defeated, Shi Hezhang's withdrawal revealed an important truth.
The Divine Tree could only provide protection. To truly repel the enemy, the strength of the clansn themselves mattered most.
With the great battle imminent, it was necessary to rouse the people's spirits.
Far away, having already left the Chen Clan compound, Shi Hezhang’s smile faded. The massive stone phantom surrounding his body shattered like a mirror.
Shi Hezhang silently raised the Divine Stone in his hand and carefully examined its condition.
Though it was not the true Divine Stone of his clan, this fragnt retained over half of the original's power.
Yet, the once-flawless Divine Stone now bore subtle changes.
A faint scratch marred its lower edge, the mark left by Chen Qingyu’s Sword Qi strike.
At its center were several leaf-like imprints, remnants from its clash with the Chen Clan’s Divine Tree.
Though the stone had not shattered, these traces proved that the Chen Clan’s totem was not weak.
In the next mont, however, Shi Hezhang smiled faintly and put the Divine Stone away.
His purpose here had already been achieved. He had tested the strength of the Chen Clan’s totem and drained so of its divine power.
More importantly, he had crushed the Chen Clan’s prestige, causing their morale to plumt.
In the coming war, his clan had no reason to fail.
As he departed, the Chen Clan’s totem did not act again—proof of its weakness and near exhaustion.
The incense totem was both the foundation of the Chen Clan and its fatal weakness.
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