by Translator: BornToBe; Author: Ordinary Magician (平凡魔术师); Licensed From: 17k
However, when the wind settled, everyone was shocked to find that they didn’t see Man Batian’s figure within the ruined earth.
“He exploded?” People were stunned, but this didn’t seem likely. Based on the power that Man Batian had released, this attack should have at most heavily injured him. There was no way that he wouldn’t have at least an intact corpse.
Xiong Tianba looked all around. He was stunned. When his rod had been about to smash Man Batian, Man Batian had suddenly vanished. His attack had missed.
Suddenly, Xiong Tianba let out a roar and smashed his rod behind him. At this moment, Man Batian appeared there, his rod smashing toward Xiong Tianba. His rod grew until it was a giant pillar equal in size to Xiong Tianba’s rod.
BOOM! Their two rods clashed once more. Xiong Tianba’s giant figure was actually sent tumbling across the ground.
He bounced on the ground a dozen times, flipping over and over again. Each time, the ground shook intensely.
Finally, Xiong Tianba managed to stabilize himself. He suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood.
Due to his manifestation not being recognized by heaven and earth, he was unable to lock down Long Chen with his Heavenly Dao energy. As for using Spiritual Strength, there was no way that someone from the Xuan Beasts could use that to lock down Long Chen.
So there had been no need for Long Chen to receive his attack. Long Chen didn’t want to receive such an attack either. Even he would have to suffer a bit to take it head-on.
Long Chen had used the Celestial Lightning Body Blink to get away, but he had used it very subtly, and with space twisting so wildly from that attack, others had been unable to tell.
He had then gone around Xiong Tianba’s giant body to strike him. At that time, Xiong Tianba had just launched an all-out attack and hadn’t fully recovered. As a result, his hasty block didn’t even have seventy percent of his power in it.
“What a blind bear. You can’t even hit me. If you’re this weak, you’re not even fit to fight me,” sneered Long Chen. His rod once more whipped toward Xiong Tianba.
Xiong Tianba roared furiously, but he was forced to retreat time and time again. This time, Long Chen didn’t even give him a chance to unleash a powerful attack like before.
Seeing Xiong Tianba being crushed like this, the surrounding experts sighed. Xiong Tianba was truly pitiful. His manifestation looked like it had awakened, but it had not received the recognition of the world. It only allowed him to use his world energy to its full potential, but he was unable to merge it with his Heavenly Dao energy to unleash even greater power. He was probably only slightly stronger than he had been before awakening his manifestation, but he had lost all his future prospects.
Xiong Tianba was constantly absorbing energy from the land, ensuring that he wouldn’t run out of energy. Even as he was forced to retreat miserably, it was very difficult for Long Chen to actually beat him.
“This fellow’s too powerful. If he really awakened his manifestation properly, what could I do to him?” Long Chen thought to himself. If his manifestation was truly awakened, just how powerful would he be? “Little brute, shouldn’t you hurry up and surrender? You killed my mount, so you can replace it. Otherwise, your life will end here.”
“Do you think you can order around the great Xuan Beasts?! Fuck off!” roared Xiong Tianba. Flames almost burst out of his eyes. However, he didn’t even have any ability to retaliate. He could only bitterly endure.
“Since you want to be pigheaded, that’s fine. I’ll be eating bear meat tonight.”
Long Chen’s attacks grew sharper and sharper. However, he still used the techniques that Man Batian was most skilled in. The experts watching had no doubt that he was Man Batian.
“Barbarian Dragon Heavenly Twister!”
Eighteen dragon-shaped figures flew out of Long Chen’s rod, transforming into a giant twister that attacked Xiong Tianba.
This strange move caught Xiong Tianba off guard. He was instantly sucked into it and then into the air.
“Not good!” Xiong Tianba’s expression changed. Having left the ground, he was unable to absorb any more energy. Since he wasn’t recognized by the Heavenly Daos, he had lost his support.
“Coiling Dragon’s Eighteen Staves!” Long Chen followed up with another attack. His rod twisted and turned, seeming to become eighteen separate rods that attacked from eighteen different angles.
Banging sounds mixed with the sound of bones breaking rang out. Xiong Tianba coughed up blood.
“Man Batian’s so powerful. Even without using his manifestation, he managed to defeat Xiong Tianba.” People’s hearts shook. No one had thought that Man Batian was so terrifying.
Just as Long Chen was launching consecutive attacks, a dozen attacks shot toward him. Experts from the Xuan Beasts were actually interfering.
“You want to fight in a group? Fine, I’ll accompany you!”
Long Chen laughed, his staff unleashing a wave of light that blasted apart those attacks. Like a devil, Long Chen began to attack the newcomers.
He knew that Xiong Tianba wasn’t someone he could kill here. If he did, it would only cause trouble. If his identity was exposed, that would be even more trouble. However, a bunch of little ants like these newcomers? They could be killed.
“Brother Man, please stop!”
Suddenly, a figure appeared, tearing through space. He blocked Long Chen’s path.
Long Chen narrowed his eyes. This person wasn’t someone that he knew, but Man Batian knew him. With Evilmoon’s help, Long Chen had managed to get a complete set of his memories. Through those memories, he knew that this person was Lu Zichuan, a genius of the Yin Yang Sword Sect, a neutral power.
Just like the Barbarian Dragon Palace, the Yin Yang Sword Sect was an ancient sect that had been in hiding for so long that others had forgotten about their existence. They only appeared once the great era had come.
Lu Zichuan had a pair of swords on his back. One was black, and one was white. They were known as the Yin Yang Dual Swords. When he used them, he could manifest the Dao before him. The legends were quite terrifying.
It seemed that the Yin Yang Sword Sect had a slight relationship with the Barbarian Dragon Palace. As for Man Batian and Lu Zichuan, the two of them had even exchanged pointers. But that time, Man Batian had lost.
Or rather than saying that he had lost, it was more accurate that Man Batian had retreated to avoid losing. Lu Zichuan’s Yin Yang Dual Swords were too strange, and he was unable to break through their defenses. They hadn’t been allowed to go all-out either to avoid harming the friendship between their sects.
In truth, Man Batian knew that he had lost, so he had been itching for another battle with Lu Zichuan.
“What, brother Lu, are you thinking of stopping me?” Long Chen’s aura began to rise in preparations for a fight. He was facing Lu Zichuan with Man Batian’s character.
“I’m not a match for brother Man. I’m just here to act as a mediator. Since the Brahma secret realm is about to open, we should consider what’s important and what’s not. There’s no deep enmity between everyone, so why bother fighting to the death?” said Lu Zichuan.
“Hmph, this stupid bear killed my mount. How can I spare him? Well, since brother Lu has spoken up for you, I can give you face. But next time you dare to be rude to me, I really will be having some bear meat.”
After saying that, without even looking at the bloodstained Xiong Tianba, Long Chen walked into his carriage. Although there was no mount, the carriage activated on its own and flew away.
Chapter 2006 A Crowd of Experts
Long Chen left, leaving behind countless spectators who were still dazed. This Man Batian was absolutely vicious.
As for Xiong Tianba, he was infuriated. He couldn’t stop his bleeding. The rod that Long Chen had used had unleashed immense dragon might when activated with the power of the azure dragon, and it had caused him to lose his ability to heal his wounds.
A manifestati
on that was not acknowledged by the Heavenly Daos was viewed as cheating by the heavens. Even his original Heavenly Dao Recovery ability had lost a great deal of its effect. Under the strange gaze of countless experts, he had an urge to find a hole to bury himself in.
“Man Batian, I swear I will avenge this enmity!” roared Xiong Batian. He then also left after saying some vicious words. However, when comparing how Long Chen had left to how he was leaving, the difference was immense.
As for the dual sword wielding Lu Zichuan, he had a disdainful smile, but he also didn’t say anything.
The various experts were quite pleased inside seeing this result. They had been able to see Xiong Tianba suffer so much. After all, being part of the human race, although they did their best to suppress that feeling, they still felt refreshed. The Xuan Beasts and ancient races were just too hateful.
“However, Xiong Tianba at least let us see how powerful a manifestation is upon being fully awakened. Even though he isn’t blessed by the Heavenly Daos, he is able to unleash the full power of his world energy, while we are only able to use thirty percent. He’s actually quite unlucky. Not only was his manifestation crippled, but he also ended up running into a monster like Man Batian. Empyreans that haven’t awakened their manifestations probably can’t match either of them.” One expert made a rather neutral evaluation.
“You’re right. If his manifestation was truly awakened, he would be blessed by the Heavenly Daos, and his Heavenly Dao energy would have merged with his world energy. Then Man Batian definitely wouldn’t have been a match for him.”
“But how could it be so easy to fully awaken a manifestation? Talent, willpower, opportunity, and luck. You can’t be lacking even one. Moreover, you also need patience. We all have to patiently wait. The more impatient we are, the more chaotic our mental realms and the more difficult it will be to awaken our manifestations. Xiong Tianba is a perfect example of what we shouldn’t do. Empyreans are favored by the heavens. The Heavenly Daos will decide which one of us awakens our manifestation first. Anyone who tries to break that rule is definitely courting death.”
Fully awakening a manifestation was extremely difficult. Even though there were countless geniuses rising, even though there were countless people whose manifestations were just one step away from awakening, not one person had achieved it on the continent yet.
They were all waiting. But as time passed, more and more people reached the same level as them. They might be surpassed if they kept waiting.
The pressure these geniuses were under was immense. Each of them hoped to be the favored son of the heavens and run ahead of the others.
However, if they wanted to really get ahead of others, they couldn’t be disrespectful to the heavens. They couldn’t cheat their way forward.
Xiong Tianba had ended up giving a perfect example for everyone. Now they didn’t dare to even think about cheating like he had. It was better to patiently wait.
“Xiong Tianba is essentially crippled. This defeat will definitely be a fatal blow to him. Others are all advancing, while he’s stuck in his original spot. He’ll only be thrown further and further behind,” said someone.
“Hmph, what do you know? You’re such a fool. Do you think Xiong Tianba is someone you can discuss?” Suddenly, one of the distant Xuan Beasts opened his mouth. “The reason Xiong Tianba was at a disadvantage was because he suffered some injuries due to forcibly awakening his manifestation. He can only use eighty percent of his real power right now. The reason he came out before fully recovering is because he wants to enter Brahma secret realm. Inside, he can borrow the power of the gods to recover, and if he obtains their blessing, he might be able to restore his manifestation and truly awaken it. Pill Valley’s higher-ups have already arranged things to be more convenient for him. Just watch, next time the two of them meet, Man Batian will definitely be the one to die. You neutral people are opportunists who don’t understand anything. All you know how to do is spout nonsense.”
Those experts’ expressions sank at being criticized by this Xuan Beast, but before they could retort, the Xuan Beasts left.
“Fuck those idiots from the Xuan Beasts! Long Chen really needs to bully them more! They’re too hateful. Hopefully, Long Chen can enter as well and kill them,” said one neutral expert.
“Don’t get angry. It’s meaningless. We’re basically only here to watch the fun and see if we can dredge up anything good. After all, the Xuan Beasts are allied with Pill Valley, while we’re not. Let’s go.”
The spectators began to scatter. However, many of them continued to discuss Man Batian and Xiong Tianba, as well as discussing Xiong Tianba’s goal in the Brahma secret realm.
Long Chen had slipped away in his carriage. Without a mount pulling him, he felt strange. He had an urge to get a Xuan Beast to pull his carriage, but then he felt that it would be too arrogant. Even Man Batian wouldn’t be so arrogant.
He could only continue in his carriage with no mount, no longer crashing forward like before. With Pill Valley not that far ahead, he didn’t dare to act too exaggerated.
Long Chen looked down at the barren ground below him and recognized this place to be one of the former seven danger zones of the Martial Heaven Continent: the Heaven Devouring Forest.
The Heaven Devouring Forest had been damaged by the fire of Pill Valley thanks to Long Chen’s incitement. Then in the Spirit World, they had been destroyed by Long Chen.
Now the heaven-reaching forest had vanished. Back when he had first seen the Heaven Devouring Forest, he had been stunned by the terrifying tree monsters. But now, it had vanished from this world.
“Great heroes are born on the Martial Heaven Continent; the true Dragon rises arrogantly above all. Unrivaled divine power shatters heaven and earth, a power that looks down on all others. Nowadays, mediocrity is everywhere; people think of themselves as amazing without realizing others are laughing at them. The divine valley and ghost forest are still present, but the Master Long San of that time has vanished!”
Back then, someone had come up with this humorous poem. Reciting it, Long Chen didn’t know what feeling he had. The divine valley was still present, but the ghost forest was gone.
When he had fled from Pill Valley, the Pill Fairy had appeared in front of him. Instead of stopping him, she had given him her symbol in hopes that he would be able to slip away. He would never be able to forget that kindness.
As for now, he was like water and fire with Pill Valley. There was no way to mediate things between himself and Yu Xiaoyun. As for the Pill Fairy, she was currently receiving Pill Valley’s god inheritance.
“How stupidly dramatic.” Long Chen cursed. He wasn’t afraid of any enemy, but he was afraid of facing the Pill Fairy. If the Pill Fairy was standing in front of him, would he really be able to bring himself to kill her?
As he got closer to Pill Valley, he saw more and more experts. He saw people from the ancient races, the Corrupt path, the ancient family alliance, the Xuan Beasts, and even some people from Heavenly Fate Island.
The people from Heavenly Fate Island had different auras from regular cultivators, making them easy to recognize. However, they were no longer wearing robes of Heavenly Fate Island. They were wearing disciple robes of other sects. It seemed that Heavenly Fate Island’s elite disciples had been snatched up by the various large sects.
The four Fate Princes were dead, the Unfettered Allseer had been killed by the Dragonblood Legion, and Ji Wuming had fallen to Long Chen’s hands. Heavenly Fate Island was truly and fully done. Those disciples had naturally found other paths for themselves.
Long Chen also saw several black-robed figures on his path. They covered up their faces, making it so others couldn’t recognize them. They didn’t have any auras around them, and even looking right at them, it was impossible to sense their existence.
Clearly, these were assassins from the Bloodkill Hall. For them to be openly walking around in daylight, Long Chen had an urge to kill them.
He
had destroyed the statue of the Killing God, and there was no way for him to settle things with them. The Bloodkill Hall had tried to assassinate him multiple times before his anger had been provoked and he had started counterattacking.
The most infuriating time was when he had found one of their strongholds and their leader had said that once he managed to survive a few more assassinations, their enmity would end.
Long Chen still remembered how arrogant that person had been. It was like other people’s lives were nothing, and if the Bloodkill Hall wanted to assassinate someone, they could only endure. That was why Long Chen had smashed their statue of the Killing God, making it so there was no way to reconcile their hatred.
“Fuck, just wait. Once we’re in the Brahma secret realm, I’ll teach you all why roses are red,” muttered Long Chen.
The Bloodkill Hall was quite crafty. In his last tribulation, there had been some disciples of the Bloodkill Hall hiding amongst the enemy experts. They had tried to assassinate people from the Dragonblood Legion, but those assassins that had fought back then were expendable. Although some were killed, they weren’t true elites. The Bloodkill Hall had been holding those back.
Continuing forward, he finally arrived at a large empty space. This space was where the transportation formation to enter Pill Valley was. He had come here before.
However, this giant space was now packed with powerful experts, and even Long Chen jumped in shock.
“Where did this many powerful experts come from?!”
Chapter 2007 Yu Xiaoyun’s Sinister Scheme
When Long Chen arrived before the transportation formation he had come to years ago, he was stunned by the sea of people he saw.
These experts were all at the Life Star realm. Every one of them was a terrifying Empyrean. He guessed that there were no less than a million of them.
“How is this fucking possible?” Long Chen couldn’t believe his eyes. Had he gone crazy, or had the world gone crazy? Just where had these people come from?