BOOM!
Chen Hua took several steps forward, his power fully unleashed. The wind and snow before him instantly recoiled as if cleaved apart, and the very air fractured with cracks that spread like a vast spider web.
"They all say I, Chen Hua, am a Demon Monarch of this generation. Do you even know what a demon is?"
With those words, Chen Hua's long hair stood on end. A boundless surge of blood-red energy erupted from his back, condensing into a towering, crimson, eight-ard Dharma.
"Such a secret technique exists?"
Dugu Hanxiao stood with his blade at the ready, his eyes narrowed in thought as he watched the blood energy erupt from Chen Hua, his face a mask of disbelief. Then, the royal family mber drew his blade from the air and slashed sideways.
"A Secret Technique bought with lifeblood? It's not even worth a single strike!"
BOOM!
The eight arms pressed down, barely blocking the blade's light, yet the Dharma itself flickered in and out of existence. A golden war spear suddenly materialized, and caught unawares, Dugu Hanxiao's right shoulder was pierced through.
At this mont, however, the blood-red Dharma behind Chen Hua completely disintegrated, and his blood-soaked clothes were left in tatters.
"As long as I, Chen Hua, am here, you will not kill my nephew."
This Demon Monarch, who had made his na thirty years ago, held a golden war spear, using it to prop up his ravaged body as he attempted to launch another attack.
But a dazzling beam of blade light split the void, descending in a furious slash. The river surged, and monstrous waves billowed into the sky.
"You're the first to wound . For that, you should be able to rest in peace."
Dugu Hanxiao's eyes glinted with malice; he held nothing back.
Just then, a young figure dragged a longsword ashore. Without a word, he leaped into the air. The sword pierced the sky, its Sword Qi as cold as frost.
"Break for !"
A heaven-shattering roar resounded. Ripples of shattered power cascaded down from the sky like white waves.
"Well-fought."
This Sovereign was, after all, a Sovereign. As a master of the Heavenly Saint Realm, Dugu Hanxiao blocked the sharp edge of the Traveling Dragon Sword with a single bare hand.
BANG!
A direct, forceful strike from the Traveling Dragon Sword let out a mournful cry. Caught in Dugu Hanxiao's grasp, it was frozen in midair, unable to move an inch. Chen Yang slapped the blade, and with an explosive boom, the Traveling Dragon Sword shot sideways, redirecting the force to collide with the incoming blade light.
BOOM!
Like an earth-shaking thunderclap, Chen Yang was sent flying. He tumbled through the air several tis before crashing to the ground. The Traveling Dragon Sword was stained red with his own blood.
"Cough, cough."
Chen Yang coughed violently, blood streaming from his mouth.
"Who told you to co?" Chen Hua, already at the end of his strength, was only sitting there to desperately shield his nephew from the other three great royal families. Every mont he could hold them off was a mont gained.
Yet Chen Yang had crossed the Qingyuan River to co to this place of conflict.
"You… you shouldn't have co," Chen Hua muttered to himself, shaking his head. The last hint of color drained from his ravaged face, and a profound sorrow surfaced in the depths of his eyes.
It's over. Everything's over!
"This is my battle. But you, why did you have to get involved?" Chen Yang asked as he walked slowly to his side. "Are you alright?"
"I won't die!" Chen Hua wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and glared at Chen Yang. "I'll hold him off. You run!"
"If anyone's leaving, it'll be you."
Chen Yang paid him no further mind. He looked toward Dugu Hanxiao a hundred ters away, his lips curling into a sneer. "Old man, if you have the guts, co at ."
Dugu Hanxiao's eyebrows lifted slightly, his deep, abyssal eyes scrutinizing Chen Yang. His own shoulder was already soaked crimson with blood. His robes were stained, and he no longer held the air of a lofty master, looking thoroughly disheveled instead.
Who would have thought that the mighty Sovereign of the Dugu Royal Family would one day be injured, and by the hand of a junior, no less.
"You've shunned the path to heaven and charged headfirst through the gates of hell," Dugu Hanxiao said, shaking the broad-bladed greatsword in his hand. "Very well, this old man shall grant your wish!"
"Dugu Hanxiao, you dare!"
Across the Qingyuan River, a furious roar erupted as a figure tore through the sky toward them.
"What is there I wouldn't dare? Even if the Heavenly King himself arrived today, he could not save this boy!" Dugu Hanxiao glanced at the opposite riverbank and said softly, "As for you, Chen Shangwu, if you continue on this foolish path, you will die too once the other two royal families arrive."
CLANG!
Done with words, Dugu Hanxiao shifted his right hand and slashed his blade outwards. In that instant, the earth trembled, the river churned into waves several ters high, and the raging snowstorm recoiled.
"Quick, dodge!" Chen Hua shrieked, his eyes looking as if they would burst from their sockets as he raised his war spear to et the attack.
...
In a desolate wilderness less than ten kiloters from the Qingyuan River.
The place was devoid of human life, a vast expanse of white snow. Only the cold wind howled. Occasionally, a goshawk would soar across the do of the sky, taking advantage of the heavy snow to hunt for food.
On the distant horizon, a column of riders appeared.
The Heavy Armored Cavalry Guard cleared the path, their heavy footsteps making the very ground tremble. Each man was clad in heavy armor, a war spear in his hand.
In their midst rode a man past seventy, with a robust physique, sharp features, and an aura as imposing as a mountain. He was the Sovereign of the West Sea Royal Family, Li Jiangong.
Riding shoulder-to-shoulder with him was another elder. His stature couldn't match Li Jiangong's, but his powerful aura was in no way inferior to the West Sea Sovereign's. He was Tang Jinyuan, the current Sovereign of the Antarctic Royal Family.
"Who could have imagined soone reaching Seven Steps to Sanctity before the age of thirty? Give him another decade, and the Saint Realm itself could hardly contain him," Li Jiangong said with a sigh, though his eyes blazed with murderous intent.
"Fortunately, we discovered it in ti, otherwise…" Tang Jinyuan trailed off before changing the subject. "Since we're making such a commotion this ti, shouldn't we just wipe out the entire Chen Family while we're at it?"
"My thoughts exactly."
"Haha!"
With that, the two n exchanged a knowing smile. The fall of a royal family was like a whale fall; the benefits it would bring were unimaginable.
Hm?
The instant Li Jiangong looked up, the smile on his face froze and his gaze sharpened. Tang Jinyuan's gaze followed his.
A hundred ters ahead, a grand eight-bearer palanquin, carried by eight graceful maidens, swayed leisurely toward them. All eight maidens were elegant and exceptionally beautiful. Crucially, every single one of them was a powerful Fist Master.
They advanced at a steady, unhurried pace, showing no intention of changing direction or stopping to make way for the large troop of riders ahead. This was utterly bizarre.
"Who goes there? Get out of the way, now!" an old steward beside Li Jiangong shouted, pointing at the palanquin. Seeing that they were being ignored, the steward shook his reins, his long spear pointed at the ground, his killing intent palpable. "To play gas in front of my royal family… you must be tired of living!"
At the sa ti, a fair hand erged from the palanquin, its slender index and middle fingers pinching a three-inch dagger. "Look. What is this?"
The crowd was speechless.
The slender fingers gave a slight flick, sending the small dagger slashing through the air. The steward's warhorse, as if struck by unimaginable terror, let out a panicked whinny and reared violently. In that sa instant, the small dagger streaked past.
SWOOSH!
The blade's light was so brilliant that many instinctively threw up a hand to shield their eyes.
BOOM!
The entire area, including the air itself, trembled violently.
Then, the world fell silent.
Even the pupils of Tang Jinyuan and Li Jiangong constricted in shock, their scalps prickling with raw horror. The steward and the warhorse beneath him had both been sliced clean in half by that three-inch dagger.
"This…"
Instantly, the combined formation of the two great royal families erupted into chaos. A Human Saint Realm expert had been slain in a single exchange?
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